Anheuser-Busch InBev’s stock BUD fell 1.4% Tuesday, after a weekend report suggested further fallout on sales of Bud Light from the controversy surrounding the company’s use of a transgender influencer in its marketing. Beer Business Daily said Bud Light’s off-premise sales volume was down 26.1% in the week through April 22 from a year ago. Off-premise sales are conducted outside of bars and restaurants, and include grocery and convenience stores and liquor stores. The shocking deterioration of Bud Light Blue’s market share “continued apace through the third week of April — and actually somehow worsened. We’ve never seen such a dramatic shift in national share in such a short period of time,” Beer Business Daily said on its website. The partnership between the company and influencer Dylan Mulvaney hit the internet on April 1, as the Associated Press has reported. Mulvaney has 10.8 million social-media followers and many companies are turning to influencers as they seek to connect with younger generations. But the Bud Light-Mulvaney partnership quickly brought an onslaught of criticism from people who said they’re angry about the world going “woke.” Musician Kid Rock posted a video of himself shooting cans of Bud Light with a rifle. The marketing executive behind the campaign has taken a leave of absence, according to reports. Anheuser-Busch will report quarterly earnings on Thursday.
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