How are things going for Bud Light after its partnership with transgender social media personality Dyland Mulvaney? Not great. In fact, a nationwide consumer revolt has resulted in a “bloodbath” for the now-woke beer brand.
Such is what Fox Business reported, saying “Bud Light suffered a bloodbath this past weekend” and citing what Jeff Fitter, a man who runs a restaurant and sports bar in Arkansas, said. Mr. Fitter, speaking to Fox Business, said, “I think society flexes it muscles sometimes and reminds manufacturers that the consumer is still in charge.” Continuing, he said, “In Bud Light’s effort to be inclusive, they excluded almost everybody else, including their traditional audience.”
According to him, the drop in demand was huge: sales of bottled Anheuser-Busch bottled products dropped by a whopping 30% over the past week alone, while draught beer, for him, plummeted by an even more massive 50%,
Similarly, Fox Business reports that another bar owner said that a whopping eighty percent of normal Bud LIght drinkers ordered something else and the remaining 20 percent were people that stayed off social media got a different drink once other patrons told them what Bud LIght had been up to.
Another example in the Fox Business article comes from Texas, where a spot that normally sells the equivalent of 495 12-ounce Bud Light pours at an event sold only four this week, a more than 99% drop off in demand for Bud Light.
The Daily Mail had a similar report on the subject, saying that distributors were “spooked” by a massive drop off in demand after the Mulvaney announcement, reporting:
Bud Light sales have plunged and its distributors in the Midwest, the South, and rural areas are ‘spooked’ by backlash after the company partnered with trans TikToker Dylan Mulvaney.
Distributors for Anheuser-Busch products, the company that owns Bud Light, have reported dwindling sales over the weekend, according to trade publication Beer Business Daily.
In boycotting Bud Light and other Anheuser-Busch products, consumers are doing what conservative commentators like Charlie Kirk and Matt Walsh suggested and singling out a company to boycott and pressure.
Walsh suggested the tactic in a two-part post, saying, “Here’s what we should do: Pick a victim, gang up on it, and make an example of it. We can’t boycott every woke company or even most of them. But we can pick one, it hardly matters which, and target it with a ruthless boycott campaign. Claim one scalp then move onto the next. The problem is that many conservatives don’t have the stomach or attention span for this. And our political “leaders” are almost completely useless. There is a way to win real victories. We just need a little grit and a little follow through.”
Kirk, in response, said, “I agree, Matt. Let’s start with Budweiser. Since 2008, it’s been owned by a Dutch multinational. Plenty of American-owned alternatives. And it’s an awful product. Let’s put Budweiser out of business. What say you?”
I agree, Matt.
Let's start with Budweiser. Since 2008, it's been owned by a Dutch multinational. Plenty of American-owned alternatives. And it's an awful product.
Let's put Budweiser out of business.
What say you? https://t.co/KOlA2QpLsW
— Charlie Kirk (@charliekirk11) April 6, 2023
Bud Light, for its part, is yet to back down. Anheuser-Busch, in its statement to Fox News Digital on the matter, said, “Anheuser-Busch works with hundreds of influencers across our brands as one of many ways to authentically connect with audiences across various demographics. From time to time we produce unique commemorative cans for fans and for brand influencers, like Dylan Mulvaney. This commemorative can was a gift to celebrate a personal milestone and is not for sale to the general public.”
Similarly, Bud Light’s vice president of marketing, Alissa Heinerscheid, defended the decision in a podcast interview, saying, “I’m a businesswoman, I had a really clear job to do when I took over Bud Light, and it was ‘This brand is in decline, it’s been in a decline for a really long time, and if we do not attract young drinkers to come and drink this brand there will be no future for Bud Light.‘”
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