Thought the fallout from the Bud Light marketing disaster had hit rock the bottom? Well, new sales data suggests we may not have seen the worst for the long-suffering beer brand.
Latest sales data from Bump Williams Consulting and NielsenIQ has found that until the week ending June 17, sales of Bud Light slumped an astonishing 28.5 per cent year on year.
The number eclipses the two previous weekly falls of 26.8 per cent and 24.4 per cent respectively.
And it was bad news generally for Anheuser-Busch brews with Budweiser falling 12.3 per cent, Busch Light down 8.1 per cent and Michelob Ultra down four per cent.
And what was bad news for Anheuser-Busch was good for its main rival Modelo, whose sales rose 8.6 per cent.
Other Bud Light rivals to make hay were Miller Lite up 16 per cent, Coors Light up 21.8 per cent and Yuengling Lager up a whopping 25.1 per cent.
Desperate to right its Bud Light ship, Anheuser-Busch has announced it will offer drinkers a $US15 rebate on 15-packs of Bud Light over the Independence Day long weekend on July 4. With some retailers discounting the 15-packs to as low as 15 bucks, that means it’s virtually giving the beer away for free.
Meanwhile, the brand continues to irritate conservatives and alienate core customers with its decision to sponsor the LGBTQI+ event, Toronto Pride.
Bud Light has sponsored one of the event’s main stages and photos of drag queens and scantily clad dancers dressed in leather and fishnet clothing has been posted on anti-Bud Light social media pages.
Bud Light have a stage at Toronto Pride. This is one of the acts. pic.twitter.com/4mMYkM98EZ
— The Post Millennial (@TPostMillennial) June 24, 2023
Bud Light served as a sponsor for Pride events across North America, including events in Chicago, San Francisco and Toronto.
On its website, Bud Light Canada said it “has been a proud partner of Pride Toronto for the last 10 years” and added: “This year, we’re commemorating this milestone with Pride Toronto by featuring them on our can design, as well as continuing as the official beer sponsor of the festival.”
Bud Light also stated it provided $US100,000 to various organisations that support the LGBTQIA+ community across Canada and has created a range of Bud Light beer cans to commemorate the partnership.
The two marketing executives responsible for enlisting Dylan Mulvaney to the brand in the first place – Alissa Heinerscheid, the vice president of marketing, and her boss, Daniel Blake – have still not returned to work after being placed on leave.
