Anheuser-Busch reportedly lost more than $6 billion in value after its disastrous decision to partner with trans narcissist Dylan Mulvaney. If there was anything clear from this move, it is that Bud Light’s VP of marketing, Alissa Heinerscheid, who was responsible for the debacle, wanted to push a social agenda rather than cater to it customers base.
“Bud Light had been kind of a brand of fratty, kind of out-of-touch humor, and it was really important that we had another approach,” Heinerscheid said in a podcast interview in late March.
In her mind, hiring a man who pretends to be a little girl was the approach Bud Light needed to expand its customer base. Instead, Heinerscheid succeeded in shrinking it, losing billions of dollars in the process. As a result, both Heinerscheid and her superior Daniel Blake have been put on a leave of absence in response to the backlash.
“Given the circumstances, Alissa has decided to take a leave of absence which we support,” an Anheuser-Busch spokesperson said. “Daniel has also decided to take a leave of absence.”
However, sources told The Wall Street Journal that the decision to leave was not voluntary.
The company’s immediate response to the backlash was to downplay its relationship with Mulvaney, claiming the company “works with hundreds of influencers across our brands as one of many ways to authentically connect with audiences across various demographics.”
That explanation failed to quell the backlash, and Anheuser-Busch CEO Brendan Whitworth later issued a statement insisting that the company “never intended to be part of a discussion that divides people. We are in the business of bringing people together over a beer.”
Again, the situation for Anheuser-Busch did not get better, and demand for the beer plummeted.
Fox News reports that the company has also “hired two consultants with experience in Washington, D.C.’s, conservative circles to advise the brand moving forward.”
But this strategy is not going to work. Even Donald Trump Jr. defended the company, arguing that Anheuser-Busch was too “iconic” to be boycotted and that it mostly donates to Republicans, but his pleas fell on deaf ears. The damage has been done.
Can anything save Bud Light? I have no doubt that they’ll recover slightly in time, but the damage to the brand has been done. A change in leadership and hiring D.C.-based consultants won’t fix it.
Companies should learn from this situation and realize that aligning with divisive issues is a recipe for disaster because when you insult your consumers, they will respond. It is commonly believed that boycotts don’t work, and in general, it’s true. When a brand takes a position on something controversial, there are usually as many people willing to support them for it as there are those who will boycott them. The effectiveness of the Bud Light boycott tells us that there are more people offended by the mainstreaming of transgenderism than those who aren’t. Which means we’ve got to keep up the fight against this dangerous, radical ideology. You can help us do that by becoming a PJ Media member today.
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