The marketing firm behind Bud Light’s disastrous liaison with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvany has fired more than a dozen employees just days after boasting about a lavish trip to Cannes.
Captiv8 flew with staff in June to the Cannes-Lions film festival in a customized private jet.
The California-based company boasted about its experience with La Compagnie before firing 13 of its workers on July 5.
One employee described CEO Krishna Subramanian as “deaf” to the New York Post, adding that the layoffs accounted for about five percent of the company’s 200 employees.
Subramanian boasted about the trip during a company-wide Zoom meeting, sharing pictures and videos of the luxury trip.
Captiv8 flew to the Cannes-Lions film festival in June with employees and CEO Krishna Subramanian in a customized private jet
Social media posts show staff and Subramanian enjoying parties on yachts, sipping champagne and cocktails by the pool and partying in villas in the south of France.
Partnering with MasterCard and Rolling Stone, they boasted on social media, with Subramanian posting several clips and images on his own page.
A current employee said: “They said they would invest in the future of the company and build relationships.”
“Maybe they could have saved jobs instead of wasting all the money in Cannes.”
Another who was fired told the Post: “The timing was awful.” “You wouldn’t expect to be fired after such an extravagant trip.”
“If you do more business in Cannes, you don’t have to downsize and lay off your workforce.”
Subramanian reportedly told surviving staff on another call after the killing that the ad agency was “reviewing budgets” and “evaluating finances.”
Founded in 2015 by millionaire Subramanian, the company has worked with McDonald’s, Disney, Toyota, Nordstrom, Macy’s and OceanSpray.
In a statement, they said the layoffs represented less than five percent of the workforce base, adding that they are “actively hiring new employees for a range of roles.”
The California-based company boasted about the La Compagnie experience before firing 13 of its workers on July 5
Social media posts show staff and Subramanian enjoying parties on yachts, sipping champagne and cocktails by the pool and partying in villas in the south of France
Mulvaney worked with Bud Light on the March Madness campaign in April and was gifted a can of the lager with her face on it – sparking outrage
One employee branded CEO Krishna Subramanian “deaf,” adding that the layoffs accounted for about five percent of the company’s 200 employees
The collaboration with MasterCard and Rolling Stone saw them brag on social media, with Subramanian posting several clips and images on his own page
Subramanian boasted about the trip during a company-wide Zoom meeting, sharing pictures and videos of the luxury trip
A Captiv8 spokesperson said: “We regularly assess the productivity of our employees and these layoffs were part of an ongoing strategy that ensures our continued success.”
“We would like to emphasize that these decisions, which were not taken lightly, were based on a strategic assessment by our team considering our business priorities and not on financial challenges.”
Subramanian reportedly told the remaining staff on another call after the killing that the ad agency was “reviewing budgets.”
The company said the trip was “paid for alongside our brand partners and customers, has no impact on the company’s overall bottom line” and is a “significant lever for Captiv8’s business development.”
Bags of skin and beauty products, designer sunglasses, complimentary alcohol and personalized luggage tags were given away to attendees at the event.
Subramanian had already described himself as an “expert in influencer marketing” in a number of mainstream media interviews prior to the bud light disaster.
Bud Light has previously pointed the finger at a “third party” marketing company for the bug, but remained silent when asked to identify them.
Captiv8 was reportedly put into “panic mode” after the huge backlash, but has never publicly commented on the collaboration.
Subramanian had already described himself as an “expert in influencer marketing” in a number of mainstream media interviews prior to the bud light disaster
Bags of skin and beauty products, designer sunglasses, complimentary alcohol and personalized luggage tags were given away to attendees at the event
A current employee said: “They said they would invest in the future of the company and build relationships.”
The 26-year-old transgender activist announced the partnership in a series of videos that included the hashtag “#budlightpartner” and captions touting the cans with her face as her “most prized possession”.
Anheuser-Busch, Bud Light’s parent company, has lost a whopping $390 million in US sales by partnering with 26-year-old Mulvaney.
Modelo Especial has since officially topped Bud Light as America’s best-selling beer, with data showing sales continue to fall — volumes are also down 26.7 percent.
According to NIQ data, Mexican lager outperformed Bud Light in off-premises beer sales in May, June and July, holding a 9.1 share over the past four weeks while Bud Light slipped to a 7 share.
The world’s largest brewer blamed Bud Light’s “volume drop” for the second-quarter sales decline — figures show total U.S. sales for the April-June period fell 10.5 percent year-on-year.
In a recent statement, the company said sales to US retailers were down 14 percent, adding that it was “below the industry.” This was a direct result of the controversy that erupted after linking up with Mulvaney.
Bud Light’s volumes were also down 26.7% as the company struggled to emerge from the PR disaster of partnering with prominent transgender influencer Mulvaney
Anheuser-Busch profits plummeted after the first scandal. Overall, the company is down $40 billion
Anheuser-Busch InBev furloughed two executives responsible for the Captiv8-led partnership in April — Alissa Heinerscheid, vice president of marketing, and her boss, Daniel Blake.
Bud Light teamed up with Mulvaney as part of March Madness in April and gave her a personalized tin, prompting massive backlash and outrage across the country.
The tin was gifted to Mulvaney to “be a girl” for 365 days, the phrase she uses to describe her transition from male to female.
Persistent problems include Anheuser-Busch forcing two of its top executives on “furlough” after the big marketing blunder.
There have been claims that both executives were eventually fired over the fiasco – which the company denies.
Alissa Heinerscheid, vice president of marketing, 39, and Daniel Blake, vice president of mainstream brands, 34, have both taken voluntary leave of absence following the backlash.