Just when you think the story has died down a new wrinkle emerges from the controversy over Bud Light and its short-lived decision to hire Dylan Mulvaney as a spokesperson.
The fallout from Bud Light's decision to partner with the popular transgender social media influencer has led to flagging sales for the beer brand that some industry watchers say the company may never recover.
Related: Bud Light set to lose a big chunk of its business permanently
While sales are no longer falling, the brand's reputation is probably irreparably damaged among some of its target consumers.
But Bud Light wasn't the only entity to suffer after people started boycotting the drink.
Mulvaney has detailed the online harassment they've received from boycotters and celebrities tied tangentially to the brand have also faced online backlash from people who've made punishing Bud Light their life's mission.
But now it's time for some of the executives behind the decision to face consequences from the financial fallout from the ill-fated ad campaign.
Captiv8, a California-based marketing firm, has fired several top executives and 30 employees (about 20% of its workforce) in a new round of layoffs, the New York Post reported.
The Post could not confirm that the latest round of layoffs, which occurred Sept. 28 (after the company also fired 13 staffers in July during the height of the controversy) was related to Mulvaney, but “I’m guessing that Dylan Mulvaney contributed,” one laid-off executive said. “They weren’t laying people off before [April 1] .”
Anheuser Busch In-Bev (BUD) -) has never named the firm that was behind the partnership, but insiders told the Post that Captiv8 introduced the company to Mulvaney. CEO Krishna Subramanian has never publicly addressed the controversy, but told employees on a companywide Zoom call that the layoffs were necessary because the company is undergoing a reorganization, according to the report.
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