Bud Light’s parent company Anheuser-Busch saw over $1.4 billion in lost North American revenue last year, largely attributed to conservative boycotts over Bud Light’s partnership with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney.
While the company grew internationally, US sales declined significantly, with Bud Light volume dropping over 12%.
“Revenue declined by 17.3% with sales-to-retailers (STRs) down by 12.1%, primarily due to the volume decline of Bud Light. Sales-to-wholesalers (STWs) declined by 16.1% as shipments lagged stronger depletions in December,” the report stated.
Anheuser-Busch said its American beer sales were slowly improving but grew more slowly than expected.
The boycott rippled through the company, forcing layoffs and leadership changes.
“The beer industry remained resilient in FY23, with volumes improving sequentially throughout the year and with beer gaining share of total alcohol by value in the off-premise, according to Circana. Our beer market share has seen continued gradual improvement since May through the end of December. While our mainstream beer revenues declined this year, our above core beer megabrands continued to grow,” the report added.
Meanwhile, the promotion of beer by Mulvaney, who often markets to minors, sparked a review of advertising guidelines.
The beer industry code was revised with new rules for social media influencers regarding age-appropriate audiences and age-gating in response to the controversy.
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