Ex-Anheuser-Busch exec ‘shocked’ by Bud Light’s Dylan Mulvaney partnership: ‘Was a mistake’
A former Anheuser-Busch executive said he’s “shocked” by how much money the company has lost in the wake of its disastrous partnership with Dylan Mulvaney, which he added “was a mistake.”
Anson Frericks worked for the beer maker for nearly 11 years, serving as its president of operations until last April.
Speaking to Fox Business on Monday, Frericks said that while he’s stunned by how much money the company has bled since Mulvaney’s ill-fated post went live in early April, he’s “even more shocked, though, about the lack of clear response that the current CEO has delivered during this crisis.”
He argued that chief executive Brendan Whitworth “had had three chances now” to speak out, “most recently in the week leading up to July 4 — the No. 1 beer-selling week of the year — to have a clear response and get customers back.”
Frericks said that questions about whether the partnership with Mulvaney was a mistake are “softball questions.”
Whitworth should’ve said “of course this was a mistake, we wouldn’t do this again because we’ve lost billions of dollars in market cap, our brands are own almost 30% and all of sudden we’re putting a lot of our suppliers at risk.”
Anheuser-Busch has lost more than $27 billion in market cap as a result of sending Mulvaney a custom can with her face on it to celebrate her “365 Days of Girlhood,” and also partnering with the trans star for a March Madness promotion.
Ahead of the crucial 4th of July weekend, Bud Light sales took a turn for the worse, plunging 28.5% for the week ended July 1 — slightly worse than the 27.9% decline they suffered the previous week, according to Bump Williams, whose eponymous consulting firm crunched the latest numbers from NielsenIQ.
Boycotts have since affected other brews in Anheuser-Busch’s portfolio, including Michelob Ultra — the nation’s No. 3 beer last year — which reported a 4.3% sales dip in the week ended July 1.
Anheuser-Busch’s corporate parent, AB InBev, meanwhile, has seen its stock price dip by more than 10% over the past six months.
At its peak just one day before Mulvaney shared pictures and videos with her millions of social media followers captioned with #budlightpartner, AB InBev enjoyed a share price of $66.73.
The price has since fallen, and is $55.58 as of Monday morning.
Whitworth has refused to say whether Bud Light’s partnership with Mulvaney was a mistake and hasn’t responded to demands for an apology over the mess.
Whitworth was grilled about the beer brand’s obviously catastrophic marketing campaign during a “CBS Mornings” interview last month.
In response, the beer boss appeared determined to keep it vague and noncommittal.
“There’s a big social conversation going on right now,” Whitworth said. “It’s moved away from beer,” and “Bud Light doesn’t belong in this divisive conversation.”
He also pointed to the company’s 25-year history of supporting the LGBTQ community and said “We will continue to support the communities and organizations that we have supported for decades.”
The Post has reached out to Anheuser-Busch for comment.
Whitworth hasn’t said much to win back Bud Light beer drinkers, and the brand’s marketing team seemingly glossed over the controversy as well, releasing a light-hearted commercial that depicted business as usual rather than its tie-up with Mulvaney.
In the ad posted on Bud Light’s social media pages on Sunday, a picnic-goer heartily devours a watermelon while inclement weather sends others in the area scurrying for cover as paper plates and cans of Bud Light are sent flying.
The woman eating the watermelon observes the chaos surrounding her and simply continues on as if nothing happened.
“It’s fine, this is fine,” the caption reads, mimicking a popular meme which depicts a dog drinking coffee while his home is engulfed in flames.
