Anheuser-Busch, in an effort to soften the blow from a more than two-month boycott of Bud Light, on Thursday announced it would provide financial assistance to its distributors, wholesalers and other partners.
In a securities filing, the company said it would offer sales incentives, boost marketing and help cover the costs of fuel and freight.
"We recognize that over the last two months, the discussion surrounding our company and Bud Light has moved away from beer," CEO Brendan Whitworth wrote in a letter posted on the company's website. "And this has impacted our consumers, our business partners, and our employees."
In April, Bud Light partnered with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney, who also received a promotional can of the beer with her face on it. Some people were offended by the brand using a transgender person in its marketing, and the ire of many was raised further when its vice president of marketing said that the branding of "Bud Light has been kind of a fratty, kind of out-of-touch humor."
National retail sales of Bud Light have been down more than 25% since the controversy began. In May, the brand lost its long-held spot as the top-selling beer in America, for that month — though it still has sold the most beer by far in both volume and dollars to date this year, said Bump Williams of Bump Williams Consulting, which specializes in alcoholic beverages.
Whitworth's letter promises to make investments that will protect the jobs of their frontline employees and to provide financial assistance to independent wholesalers.
A filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Thursday briefly detailed some of the ways the company will provide assistance.
Where it is legal, the filing states, the company will provide sales incentive payments to wholesalers for beer sold throughout 2023. The company will also extend extra credit to wholesalers for the rest of the year, where legal, and will additionally reimburse wholesalers for freight and fuel surcharges for the rest of the year.
Breweries and distributors typically split the cost of fuel and freight evenly between them. As the cost of shipping rose significantly in the past few years, so did the amount of these surcharges. This move will roll back the cost of those surcharges for the year.
The filing also pledges to incrementally increase investments promoting its brands in local markets.
Benj Steinman, president of Beer Marketer's Insights, said A-B's moves will help.
"It’s an important step," Steinman said. "You could argue it could have been more. But clearly they’re addressing a need that was arising loud and clear from their wholesaler community. They needed help, and this is significant."
Anheuser-Busch products including Bud Light are distributed by Grey Eagle Distributors in all or part of 14 counties in the St. Louis area, but not St. Louis itself or Jefferson County.
Grey Eagle President and CEO David Stokes said, "I am pleased with the substantial commitment to our partnership. This support will go a long way towards helping our employees and our company as we work together to restore our collective business in our home town."
Part of A-B CEO Whitworth's letter is directed toward Bud Light consumers who were unhappy about the marketing effort that included Mulvaney.
"We hear you. Our summer advertising launches next week, and you can look forward to Bud Light reinforcing what you’ve always loved about our brand — that it’s easy to drink and easy to enjoy," it says.
The current Bud Light marketing slogan is "Easy to drink. Easy to enjoy."
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