Analyst says that sales of the brand declined in first week of boycott
Bud Light’s sales declined in the first week of a conservative-led boycott of the brand after it partnered with transgender activist Dylan Mulvaney, according to analysis.
Dave Williams of Bump Williams Consulting told industry website Brewbound that packages of Bud Light showed accelerating declines in sales and shares for the week ending April 8, when the boycott started to pick up steam. He cited NIQ data for his assertion.
“That being said, while the increased declines for Bud Light were apparent, they were also not completely earth-shattering in terms of magnitude,” Williams wrote in a note, according to the publication. “Now, this will be interesting to monitor over upcoming weeks to see if this slide continues, but for now, it looks to be rough, but not catastrophic.”
Bud Light posted a 7 percent decline in off-premise dollar sales, a 10.7 percent decline in volume, and a 3.7 percent decline in dollar shares, he wrote. The company saw a 1.6 percent decline in dollar sales, a 6.4 percent decline in volume, and a 0.7 percent decline in dollar shares for the prior week.
“On the surface, the trends for Bud Light definitely do show some variance when it comes to sales, with some showing sharper declines in the L1W versus others,” Williams said. “On top of just dollar trends though, it’s been Bud Light’s share of [the] premium [segment] for the L1W that tells a pretty consistent story where Bud Light lost share to a more notable degree to its competitors.”
The light beer’s competitors saw their shares and sales increase, he said. Coors Light increased its dollar sales by 10.7 percent, its volume by 5.5 percent, and its dollar share by 1.5 percent, Williams noted. Miller Lite saw its dollar sales increase by 16.9 percent, its volume increase by 11.7 percent, and its dollar share increase by 2.3 percent in the same April 8 time period.
