Anheuser-Busch lays off hundreds amid Bud Light controversy, drop in sales

Anheuser-Busch announced Wednesday it will be laying off almost 2 percent of its U.S. workforce, a decision that follows the recent fallout over the company’s controversial partnership with a transgender influencer and a drop in sales.  

A spokesperson for Anheuser-Busch confirmed the company, which makes Bud Light, is changing its corporate structure to “simplify and reduce layers,” within the organization. This will include eliminating positions “across every corporate function at Anheuser-Busch.”

The spokesperson told The Hill the elimination will affect less than 2 percent of its U.S. workforce. The company employs 18,000 workers in the U.S., meaning a 2 percent cut would eliminate around 360 jobs, the spokesperson said.

“While we never take these decisions lightly, we want to ensure that our organization continues to be set for future long-term success,” Anheuser-Busch CEO Brendan Whitworth said in a statement, noting the decision was “very difficult but necessary.” 

Bud Light sales have declined since the company partnered with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney on an Instagram advertisement featuring her posing with a personalized Bud Light can. The partnership prompted backlash and calls for boycotts from conservatives, while Mulvaney’s supporters and LGBTQ advocates argued Anheuser-Busch did not do enough to defend the partnership. 

Mulvaney posted a video in June saying she faced “more bullying and transphobia than I could have ever imagined,” and claimed Bud Light never reached out to her.

Bud Light recently fell from its spot as the top-selling beer for the first time in more than two decades after it was outpaced by Mexican beer Modelo Especial. Grupo Modelo is also owned by Anheuser-Busch InBev.

In the month ending July 15, Bud Light sales were down 26.5 percent, and Modelo’s were up 13.5 percent. Modelo held a 8.7 percent share of the U.S. beer market in that period, compared to Bud Light’s share of 6.8 percent, according to reporting from the Associated Press.

The spokesperson noted the layoffs will not include Anheuser-Busch’s front-line employees, including brewery and warehouse staff, drivers and field sales.

Anheuser-Busch’s statement did not include a timeline for these layoffs, but the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday morning the changes have eliminated corporate and marketing roles at major U.S. offices in St. Louis, New York and Los Angeles.

Last week, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) asked the head of Florida’s State Board of Administration (SBA) to start a review into its holdings with Anheuser-Busch’s parent company, AB InBev, and expressed concerns AB InBev “may have breached legal duties owed to its shareholders,” by associating the brand with “radical social ideologies.” In his letter, DeSantis, who has spoken out against “woke” culture in his presidential campaign, pointed to Bud Light’s drop in sales, arguing it “will continue to financially harm the SBA and other shareholders.”