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I agree. At this point I think the damage is permanent. I expect this will be a lesson in stupid business decisions for the next 40 years. Bud light used to be 13% of the market. I bet they land under 4%. Layoffs are coming in 6 months or so. This will also hurt suppliers of grain and rice.

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A slew of Chicago gay bars have stopped selling Anheuser Busch InBev products after the beer giant distanced itself from transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney's Bud Light marketing campaign amid anti-trans backlash.

2Bears Tavern Group, which owns four gay bars from Uptown to Rogers Park, was the first to drop Anheuser-Busch InBev, posting on Instagram Thursday that its abandonment of Mulvaney amid controversy "shows how little Anheuser-Busch cares about the LGBTQIA+ community, and in particular transgender people, who have been under unrelenting attack in this country."

Sidetrack, a 41-year-old gay bar founded by LGBTQ rights pioneers Art Johnston and Jose Pep  Pe a, later made the same announcement.

https://lede-admin.blockclubchicago.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2023/05/Blank-1980-x-1020-copy.png?resize=1024,528

"We must also hold brands accountable if they take active steps against LGBTQ+ equality, visibility and safety," Sidetrack posted.

The gay bars will no longer sell all Anheuser-Busch products, including Bud Light, Busch Light and Goose Island 312.

The controversy began after Anheuser-Busch partnered with Mulvaney for a sponsored post and launched a line of Pride-themed cans with various pronouns.

Many took to social media to express transphobic outrage over the Mulvaney partnership, including an Instagram clip of country musician Kid Rock shooting four cases of Bud Light with a rifle and customers vowing they would stop drinking Bud Light. Others expressed support for Mulvaney and the campaign.

But Anheuser-Busch CEO Michel Doukeris addressed the controversy during an earnings call with investors Thursday and distanced the brand from Mulvaney, according to Yahoo Finance.

"We need to clarify the facts that this was one can, one influencer, one post and not a campaign," Doukeris said.

The CEO also posted a statement in April saying the brand "never intended to be part of a discussion that divides people."

The team behind 2Bears Tavern Group accused the company of erasing "transgender people in favor of anti-trans vitriol." The bar group includes 2Bears Tavern Uptown, Jackhammer, Meetinghouse Tavern and the SoFo Tap.

Sidetrack said the CEO's statement "wrongfully validates the position that it is acceptable to acquiesce to the demands of those who do not support the trans community."

https://blockclubchicago.org/2023/05/05/chicago-gay-bars-stop-selling-bud-light-other-anheuser-busch-beers-after-brand-backs-down-to-anti-trans-critics/

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There was a distancing?

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It's not just a stupid business decision. ESG investment activism puts very large sums on the line. Blackrock money. Large pension fund money. You get the drift. However much the boycott hurts them, that kind of behind the scenes pressure might very well have threatened even greater financial harm.

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I wonder if the death of budweiser will become a case study. I’m sure the company will survive, but maybe not the brand

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That assclown CEO brushed off the sales
downturn as it only accounted for a mere
1% of revenue.  Then states they are going
to TRIPLE the marketing budget to gain
back that 1%.  This was before fag bars
in Chicago announced dumping all AB
products because they back peddled.

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Anyone who thinks this’ll cause long-term damage to the Bud franchise is crediting the public with an attention span they just don’t have. In 5 years it’ll be like this never happened. And AB-InBev is so big and diverse that it won’t even be a blip this year.

That said, I REALLY hope it hurts them and other companies get the message. I’m doing my part.

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The only way the brand survives is if it’s sold to someone who will publicly apologize and rebuild it.

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Looks like AmBev is taking it in both ends...

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Looks like AmBev is taking it in both ends...

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I worked with plenty of gay dudes in the hotel industry.

They do not like trans women...they also put up with lesbians but find they dumb

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Winning!

2Bears Tavern Group, which owns four gay bars from Uptown to Rogers Park, was the first to drop Anheuser-Busch InBev, posting on Instagram Thursday that its abandonment of Mulvaney amid controversy "shows how little Anheuser-Busch cares about the LGBTQIA+ community, and in particular transgender people, who have been under unrelenting attack in this country."

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I worked with plenty of gay dudes in the hotel industry.

They do not like trans women...they also put up with lesbians but find they dumb

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Oh no! Now what are gays going to suck down at the end of a long hot day? Not an ice cold bush, that’s for sure!

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Haha!  They done fucked up both ways playing the social justice warrior shit!!!

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As a St Louis resident for decades (before I bailed for TN), I hope some bazillionair comes in and scoops them up. Puts them back on a patriotic track and restores this shit soiled brand.

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Precisely why publicly held company’s shouldn't partake in and adversltise divisive or political issues.

Bud light completely fucked their shareholders

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ulPgWVC08KI

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Anyone who thinks this’ll cause long-term damage to the Bud franchise is crediting the public with an attention span they just don’t have. In 5 years it’ll be like this never happened. And AB-InBev is so big and diverse that it won’t even be a blip this year.

That said, I REALLY hope it hurts them and other companies get the message. I’m doing my part.

Many took to social media to express transphobic outrage over the Mulvaney partnership,

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Haha!  They done fucked up both ways playing the social justice warrior shit!!!