Global Courant
Bud Light has lost its status as the top selling beer in the US
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Modelo Especial has quietly caught up
Anheuser-Busch InBev
‘s
Bud Light as the country’s top-selling beer, underlining the impact of a boycott that followed the brand’s controversial promotion by a transgender activist.
Modelo took 8.4% of U.S. retail beer sales in the four weeks ended June 3, compared to 7.3% for Bud Light, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing an analysis of Nielsen data by consulting firm Bump Williams.
Bud Light sales were down about 24% in the week ending June 3, compared to the same week last year, Bump Williams found. Sales of other Anheuser-Busch (ticker: BUD) brands, including Budweiser and Michelob Ultra, are also down.
An Anheuser-Busch InBev spokesperson told Barron’s that the company will remain at the top in the longer term. “Bud Light continues to be the No. 1 brand nationally in the US this year by volume and dollar sales.”
The drop in turnover followed on April 1 Instagram message by transgender social media influencer Dylan Mulvaney, who showed off a personalized can of Bud Light the company had sent her as a gift.
Critics denounced the association and called for a boycott. Anheuser-Busch announced that two marketing employees were going on leave, and the global CEO downplayed the boycott’s impact by saying the can sent to Mulvaney was not part of a wider promotion. That reaction upset even more people.
While Anheuser-Busch remains the largest brewer in the US, the Journal said most Anheuser-Busch distributors are independently owned, many by families that have sold Budweiser brands for generations. Some told the Journal they are considering layoffs, while others say Modelo’s sales increase helps offset Bud Light’s decline.
Model specialsold in the US
Constellation Brands
(STZ), is a Mexican beer brand that Constellation purchased from Anheuser-Busch in 2013 after US regulators required Anheuser-Busch to sell its US rights to Modelo Especial and Corona to gain clearance for the acquisition of Mexican brewer Grupo Modelo, the Journal reported.
AB InBev shares closed 0.9% higher on Tuesday, extending a rally after country music star and bar owner Garth Brooks suggested he not ban Bud Light from his bar. In a video about his Inside Studio G websiteBrooks said that “inclusivity will always be me,” and said his “Friends in Low Places” bar will have the most popular beers, suggesting it’s Bud Light, MarketWatch reported.
Shares of the company are down 7.4% year-to-date and are down 17.8% in May. rival’s shares
Molson Coors drink
(TAP), whose Miller Lite and Coors Light brands have increased sales since the Bud Light boycotts began, are up 31.5% this year.
Write to Janet H. Cho at [email protected]
