FOX Business’ Lydia Hu opens up about the fallout from Bud Light’s controversial partnership with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney.
Industry data shows Bud Light sales fell for the sixth straight week amid a boycott that has prompted retailers to dump the unwanted beer.
Since Anheuser-Busch’s ill-fated association with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney, the beer giant’s sales have slumped, its stock price has plummeted, and stores have begun to discount Bud Light and other Anheuser-Busch products in order to pull them off the shelves.
Analysts at Beer Business Daily, who reviewed the data from Nielsen IQ, said Bud Light volumes fell 28.4% in the week ended May 13, after falling 27.7% the week before % had decreased.
| ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BUD | ANHEUSER-BUSCH INBEV | 57.15 | +0.28 | +0.50% |
| MLR | MILLER INDS | 33.98 | -0.13 | -0.38% |
| BEAT | MOLSON COORS BEVERAGE CO. | 60.63 | -0.10 | -0.16% |
According to the report, a Bud Light 24-pack was only $3.49 in at least one store.
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A general view of Bud Light beer cans standing on the rim of the glass is seen during an NHL hockey game between the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Detroit Red Wings at Little Caesars Arena on November 28, 2022 in Detroit, Michigan . ((Photo by Scott W. Grau/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) / Getty Images)
Other Anheuser-Busch brands also took a hit, with Budweiser Red volumes down 14.9% this week and Michelob Ultra down 6.8%.
The competition is benefiting from the controversy: According to Beer Business Daily, sales of Coors Light are up 16.9% and Miller Lite are up 15.1%.
The sales disaster prompted Anheuser-Busch to introduce a promotional discount ahead of Memorial Day weekend. The rebate promises an amount “equal to the purchase price of one (1) 15-pack or larger, up to $15” of Bud Light, Budweiser, Budweiser Select or Budweiser Select 55 paid for using the Anheuser-Busch Digital Prepaid Mastercard.
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Bud Light has faced backlash from longtime clients over its recent campaign with transgender activist Dylan Mulvaney. (Instagram/Fox News / Fox News)
However, because some retailers sell 15-packs or more of Budweiser products for less than $15, the rebate makes those purchases free, with no sales tax or government restrictions.
Analysts at Beer Business Daily believe there will be more promotions throughout the summer that will boost Budweiser’s sales.
“This could be a promotional summer not seen since Hurricane Katrina in 2005, when beer stores accumulated so large that the price war of all price wars began,” Beer told Business Daily.
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A view of the signage during Bud Light’s Dive Bar Tour with Post Malone at the Exit/In on April 4, 2018 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Jason Kempin/Getty Images for Bud Light/Getty Images)
The journal explained that “major price wars are often triggered by external events — in this case Hurricane Katrina and in this case Hurricane Mulvaney.”
“The only difference this time is that the external event negatively affects only one brewery,” the report said.
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That Bud Light gave transgender activist Dylan Mulvaney a personalized pack of beer featuring the influencer’s likeness as part of an ad for the company’s March Madness contest and to celebrate the anniversary since Mulvaney began identifying as a woman, Anheuser has revealed -Busch’s shares cost nearly $19 billion down 14% on nationwide beer boycotts and freezes on sales. The S&P 500 is up 2.5% over the same period.
Fox News’ Lindsay Kornick, Alex Moutevelis, and Suzanne O’Halloran contributed to this report.