Bud Light CEO won't say if company would work with trans influencer Dylan Mulvaney again
Anheuser Bush CEO Brendan Whitworth would not say if Bud Light would work with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney again during an interview with CBS.
Anheuser-Busch CEO Brendan Whitworth declined to say if he would allow Bud Light’s disastrous promotion with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney to happen again, in hindsight, despite ongoing backlash.
Bud Light sales have plummeted since the beermaker gifted Mulvaney special cans in April to celebrate a full year of "girlhood," which the influencer quickly claimed were her "most prized possession" on Instagram with a post that featured "#budlightpartner." A second video then featured Mulvaney in a bathtub drinking a Bud Light beer as part of the campaign — and the company has been mocked and boycotted ever since.
"It's been a challenging few weeks. I think the conversation surrounding Bud Light has moved away from beer, and the conversation has become divisive. And Bud Light really doesn't belong there. Bud Light should be all about bringing people together. And there's an impact on the business, and I think that's publicly covered on Bud Light specifically," Whitworth said Wednesday on "CBS Mornings."
BUD LIGHT PARENT ANHEUSER-BUSCH TO HELP DISTRIBUTORS AMID MULVANEY CONTROVERSY
A picture of the commemorative Bud Light can featuring TikTok influencer Dylan Mulvaney. (Dylan Mulvaney/Instagram)
Co-host Gayle King then asked Whitworth what the promotional campaign was intended to achieve, but the CEO downplayed the significance and noted it was simply "one can" but the company must evaluate the impact.
"We have to understand the impact that it’s had… it’s the impact on our employees, the impact on our consumers, and as well the impact on our partners," he said. "One thing I'd love to make extremely clear is that impact is my responsibility and as the CEO, everything we do here I'm accountable for."
Whitworth — who admitted the company needs to triple its investment in Bud Light advertising amid the backlash — was then asked if he would send Mulvaney the can again, in hindsight, but the CEO didn’t directly answer the question.
"There's a big social conversation taking place right now, and big brands are right in the middle of it and it's not just our industry or Bud Light. It's happening in retail, happening in fast food. And so for us what we need to understand is — deeply understand and appreciate — is the consumer and what they want, what they care about and what they expect from big brands," Whitworth said.
BUD LIGHT TO SPEND ‘HEAVILY’ ON MARKETING AFTER DYLAN MULVANEY CONTROVERSY: REPORT
Anheuser-Busch CEO Brendan Whitworth declined to say if he would allow Bud Light’s promotion with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney to happen again, in hindsight, during an appearance in 'CBS Mornings.'
The CBS morning show hosts pointed out that the non-answer is exactly why Bud Light continues to take heat from both sides, as the LGBTQ community would want him to stand by the initial decision but critics want him to admit it was a mistake to celebrate a biological male’s first year of "girlhood."
"Bud Light has supported LGBTQ since 1998, so that’s 25 years, and as we’ve said from the beginning, we’ll continue to support the communities and organizations that we’ve supported for decades," Whitworth said. "But as we move forward, we want to focus on what we do best, which is brewing great beer for everyone, listening to our consumers, being humble in listening to them and making sure we do right by our employees."
Whitworth was then pressed on where he stands regarding "queer rights" and it was noted that Bud Light has featured rainbow bottles in the past, but also has donated to conservative politicians.
"We support politicians that support our business, and when we say that we talk about things like — things that work for the industry, allow us to grow the business, allow us to employ more people and really help drive the economy," he said.
BUD LIGHT LAUNCHES SUMMER MARKETING CAMPAIGN IN WAKE OF MULVANEY CONTROVERSY
Bud Light sales have plummeted since a promotional partnership with transgender activist Dylan Mulvaney caused widespread backlash. (Instagram)
Many Bud Light consumers have opted to boycott the brand and other Anheuser-Busch products in response to the promotion, prompting a decline in sales that is yet to rebound from the slump that began this spring. According to NielsenIQ data provided to FOX Business by Bump Williams Consulting, Bud Light sales are down 11.1% on a dollar basis year-to-date through June 17 and 15.6% on a volume basis through the same period.
Despite the recent declines, Bud Light remains America’s top-selling beer year-to-date through June 17, but Modelo surpassed it in U.S. retail store sales during the last four weeks prior to that date, racking up 8.4% sales share versus Bud's 7.3% in the same four-week period.
Whitworth told CBS he has been going around listening to customers who want Bud Light to return to its roots.
"The feedback is to reinforce what Bud Light has always meant to them, which is good times, good will and easy enjoyment, and we have that all packed inside our summer campaign," he said.
FOX Business’ Eric Revell contributed to this report.
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