As Twitchy reported last week, the Human Rights Campaign Foundation had written a letter to Anheuser-Busch stating that it was “absolutely critical” for the company to stand with female impersonator Dylan Mulvaney and the trans community. HRC wasn’t too impressed with the company’s handling of the controversy, saying that, “when faced with anti-LGBTQ+ and transphobic criticism, Anheuser-Busch’s actions demonstrate a profound lack of fortitude in upholding its values of diversity, equity, and inclusion to employees, customers, shareholders and the LGBTQ+ community.”
Back on April 12, we reported that Anheuser-Busch had lost $5 billion in market value since its presentation of a Bud Light can with Mulvaney’s picture on it to commemorate his “365 days of girlhood” milestone. Now there are reports that sales of Bud Light continue to decline. While it’s still the best-selling beer in America, sales are down 26 percent since the Mulvaney stunt.
First week after Dylan Mulvaney, Bud Light in-store sales down 11%. Next week 21%. Now 26%. Continued losses of such size will be catastrophic. https://t.co/EULoES1EPh pic.twitter.com/UX06gjFHb4
— Byron York (@ByronYork) May 2, 2023
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports:
[Bump] Williams said that when Bud Light brand manager Alissa Gordon Heinerscheid took over marketing for the brand last year, sales of Bud Light were already slumping. She tried to increase sales with this campaign by trying to appeal to a younger, politically progressive market.
“Her big miss was I don’t think she understood who the core Bud Light shopper was. When she came out with her comments, they were deemed as being derogatory, insulting and juvenile. And the Bud Light drinkers said ‘Enough of that,’” Williams said.
…
During the controversy, sales have shot up for Bud Light’s biggest competitors, Miller Lite and Coors Light, Williams said. What is more, he is beginning to see what is known as a negative halo effect — other Anheuser-Busch brands are suffering because of the dispute.
We believe it was Transphobe of the Year 2022 Matt Walsh who urged conservatives to pick one target to make an example of to other companies that would go woke. It seems that’s what they’ve done. The backlash has not gone away.
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Great news
— Bruce Fenton (@brucefenton) May 2, 2023
The people have spoken. Good.
— Shawn Quinn (@ShawnQuinn83) May 2, 2023
Good. Pick ‘em off one by one. If one company loses major $ others might take note.
— THall🇺🇸🍊 (@GRAMMYinMS) May 2, 2023
It's all about the sustained damage over time
— Justin Bell (@FluffyNooblet) May 2, 2023
— MShiver (@ThisVictory) May 2, 2023
It's so wild. Bud Light is a brand in and of itself and despite decades of brilliant marketing, it's effectively dead.
— AmishDude (@TheAmishDude) May 2, 2023
— Marie Arf 🇺🇸 🇮🇱 🇨🇦 (@schwingcat) May 2, 2023
No amount of pro-America ads will bring it back either. BL absolutely misread it's core consumer base in the worst way and at the most inopportune time. Polarization on this is at a fever pitch. This will go down as the greatest ad blunder ever. Those sales won't return
— TuckerMcElroy (@grateful_wood) May 2, 2023
But on the bright side, check out that ESG score!
— Jim Barker (@jbarker1250) May 2, 2023
They've managed to make Bud Light uncool.
Good luck making it cool again.
— David X. Henry (@imau2fan) May 2, 2023
— killmaven (@Killmaven) May 2, 2023
It wasn't a marketing campaign, it was an attempt to exercise the social influence they thought they had.
— Kyle Bennett (@kylben) May 2, 2023
— Missy (@missroxilla) May 2, 2023
Wonder how the" first female VP of a beer brand" is doing?
— african lad (@KTMfan500) May 2, 2023
We think she’s still “on leave.”
Looks like those California legislators who bought four bottles for a photo op didn’t prop up sales much.
***
Related:
Anheuser-Busch assured that it’s ‘absolutely critical’ to stand in solidarity with Dylan Mulvaney https://t.co/0doZzv3cik
— Twitchy Team (@TwitchyTeam) April 29, 2023
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