The maker of Bud Light is tightening its belt. Anheuser-Busch is cutting several hundred positions in the U.S. following a restructure in the company’s corporate offices. Bud Light sales plunged after a collaboration with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney stirred controversy in April. AB InBev says the cutbacks won’t affect frontline workers, such as brewery and warehouse staff. The restructuring will be felt at the company’s offices in St. Louis, New York and Los Angeles. Bud Light lost the title of best-selling beer in the U.S. to Mexican brew Modelo earlier this summer.
By Rob Sacks, Editor at LinkedIn News
Bud Light brewer hit with layoffs in tough year
Anheuser-Busch, the parent company of Bud Light, announced Thursday that it would lay off roughly 350 employees.
Why it matters: The layoffs come after the company has struggled to win back customers in the fallout from an advertising campaign with a transgender influencer that sparked conservative backlash.
The big picture: The layoffs would affect “less than 2%” of its more than 19,000 U.S. employees, the company said in a statement.
- The layoffs would affect the company’s corporate staff, with the goal to “simplify and reduce layers within” the organization, the statement added.
- Front line workers — including “brewery and warehouse staff, drivers, and field sales” — would not be among the layoffs, the statement said.
- Anheuser-Busch CEO Brendan Whitworth said the “very difficult” decision would help ensure the company’s “future long-term success.”
State of play: Bud Light saw a precipitous drop in its sales earlier this year after its work with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney stirred conservative outrage.
- An ensuing boycott of Bud Light dethroned the brand as the nation’s top beer seller in May.
Source: AXIOS
