The fallout from the lingering Bud Light disaster has finally hit the balance sheet with its parent company, Anheuser-Busch, revealing that the customer boycott following its trans marketing stunt from April has cost the brewer $US400 million ($A610 million) in lost sales in the US.
In a statement to shareholders overnight, Anheuser-Busch revealed that US revenue fell 10 per cent in the second quarter as sales of Bud Light slumped amid customer protests. Sales to US retailers declined by 14 per cent, under-performing the wider beer industry, primarily due to the decline in the volume of Bud Light it sold
The $US400 million loss also included sales in Canada, where revenue actually rose, suggesting the slump in sales was isolated to the US and that the losses on Bud Light may have actually been even greater.
The results were “undoubtedly” the worst at the company since a 1976 strike, when Anheuser-Busch shipments were down 17.5 per cent for the year, according to trade publication Beer Marketer’s Insights.
Globally, Anheuser-Busch reported revenues were up 7.2 per cent, but that was namely due to price hikes and not an increase in volumes.
Discussing the numbers, Anheuser-Busch CEO Michel Doukeris said in a conference call that that most US consumers had no opinion on the controversy leading to Bud Light’s sales loss.
Doukeris cited research where the brewer had reached out to 170,000 customers and found most drinkers held favourable views about Bud Light, with 80 per cent either favourable or neutral.
“Regardless of favourability, our consumers across all sentiment groups have three points of feedback in common,” Doukeris said.
“One, they want to enjoy their beer without a debate. Two, they want Bud Light to focus on beer. Three, they want Bud Light to concentrate on the platforms that all consumers love, such as NFL, [veteran charity] Folds of Honor and music.”
Doukeris added that Anheuser-Busch beers in the US had maintained 98 per cent of its taps in bars and restaurants despite boycotts from a number of LGBTQI+ establishements.
“We see bars and restaurants optimising for high turnover. I think that’s the best way to explain what’s happening. And you see brands that have higher sales and turnover getting more taps,” he said.
