Anheuser-Busch InBev won the “Creative Marketer of the Year” award for the second consecutive year at the advertising industry’s annual awards show.
Anheuser-Busch Chief Marketing Officer Marcel Marcondes accepted the award Monday at the Cannes Lions festival, according to AdAge, an industry publication. (RELATED: Anheuser-Busch Launches Marketing Campaign To Win Back Customers Boycotting Bud Light)
My latest: The Bud Light boycott shows no signs of stopping two months after Dylan Mulvaney’s infamous ad campaign, according to new sales data @DailyCaller https://t.co/qJge9Qm7DF
— James Lynch (@jameslynch32) June 13, 2023
“It’s tough to see the controversial and divisive debates that have been happening in the U.S. in the last couple of weeks involving lots of brands and companies, including and especially Bud Light,” Marcondes said at Cannes, the outlet reported. He admitted the Bud Light boycott was a “wake-up call” and said the brand has been “humbled” by the controversy.
The beverage conglomerate’s prize was announced on March 16, weeks before Bud Light’s advertising partnership with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney sparked the ongoing boycott against the brand. Mulvaney posted videos promoting the brand and showed off a customized beer can Bud Light sent the influencer, drawing the ire of conservatives who accused Bud Light of supporting transgender ideology.
Mulvaney, a biological male who identifies as a transgender female, promoted transgender procedures in an Oct. 2022 interview with President Joe Biden.
The boycott was intensified when comments surfaced in which Bud Light marketing executive Alissa Heinerscheid described the brand’s image as “fratty” and “out of touch.” Heinerscheid and another Bud Light marketing executive took leaves of absence in April due to the Mulvaney backlash. (RELATED: EXCLUSIVE: Leaked Social Media Pics From Bud Light Ad Exec Who Slammed ‘Fratty’ Culture Seem Pretty Fratty)
Anheuser-Busch announced a summer marketing campaign to reconnect with customers and portray Bud Light as “easy to drink and easy to enjoy” in advertisements. The company’s U.S. CEO Brendan Whitworth plans to travel the country listening to consumers, Axios reported.
Sales of Bud Light, Budweiser and other Anheuser-Busch beer brands continue to suffer because of the boycott, according to the latest Nielsen IQ dollar sales data provided to the Daily Caller by Bump Williams Consulting. Rival brand Modelo surpassed Bud Light as America’s top selling beer and sales of other competitors have surged since the Bud Light boycott began.