Anheuser-Busch CEO Michel Doukeris addressed the backlash Bud Light received over its partnership with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney.
On Thursday, Doukeris spoke with investors during an earnings call, which was obtained by Fox Business. The call follows Bud Light’s controversial campaign with Mulvaney that caused Anheuser-Busch to lose $5 billion in market value.
“Let me start by clarifying a few facts. This was the result of one camp — it was one post, not a formal campaign or advertisements,” he said.
However, as he continued to “address the situation,” Doukeris admitted the boycott has “impacted our people and especially our front-line workers.” He named delivery drivers, sales representatives, wholesalers, bar owners, and servers as among those affected.
“These people are the fabric of our business. They are our neighbors, family members, and friends. They are in every community in America,” Doukeris added.
He explained Anheuser-Busch has been doing everything it can “to support our teams.”
The company is also “providing direct financial support to the front-line teams that work for us,” along with the wholesalers who have been impacted.
Doukeris said Anheuser-Busch has a plan in place to provide more advertisements for the company in the coming months.
“As for Bud Light, we have significantly increased our investments behind the brand in the U.S., including tripling our media spend over the summer,” he said.
Doukeris explained due to the company’s “global footprint” over the years, it has been able to overcome “different types of challenges” that have been thrown its way. This includes a “temporary ban on beer sales in certain countries” and “the months-long shutdown of bars and restaurants across the globe” due to COVID-19.
“It is too early to have a full view” of the impact the boycott has made on Bud Light’s sales, he said.
“With this perspective and in the context of our global business, we believe we have the experience, the resources, and the partners to manage this. And our four-year growth outlook is unchanged,” Doukeris said.
He expressed his optimism Bud Light would bounce back from the boycott.
“We want to reiterate our support for our wholesaler partners and everyone who brings our great beers to the market. I can tell you that we have the agility, resources, and people to support the U.S. team and move forward,” he stated.
He concluded, “We will continue to learn, meet the moment, and come out stronger, and we work tirelessly to do what we do best: Bring people together over a beer and creating a future of more cheers.”
The backlash came after an announcement Mulvaney made on his Instagram page in April. Mulvaney informed his followers Bud Light had sent him a can of beer with an image of his face on it. He said he would be partnering up with them for an ad campaign.
Correction [5/4/23, 3:02 p.m. ET]: The article previously inaccurately stated the controversial campaign caused Anheuser-Busch to lose $5 million in market value. The article has been corrected to $5 billion.