(RepublicanDaily.org) – The brouhaha the beer industry is facing in the wake of the Bud Light’s disastrous partnership with transgender activist and influencer Dylan Mulvaney is apparently not over, after the Dolf van den Brink, the CEO of Heineken issued comments on the issue.
In a video interview with news outlet CNBC, Brink said he is proud of how the company has been “navigating this new world” the best that it can manage and advised other brands to be “thoughtful” of how to approach certain issues and personalities. He also express how important it is to “be balanced,” while at the same time uncompromising in their own “values and principles.”
The Heineken CEO also acknowledged that his company has observed a “lot of polarization,” particularly in Western societies – a phenomenon that affects brands and businesses.
The comments come following the continued plunge in sales of Bud Light and continued criticism of the beer brand and its parent company, Anheuser-Busch, after it announced a partnership with Mulvaney a few months ago. Bud Light sent over customized beer cans to mark Mulvaney’s “365 days of girlhood.” The 26-year old transgender influencer – who has more than 10 million followers on Tiktok alone and uses the “she/they” pronouns – has been very vocal and open about his transition process. Mulvaney’s popularity is such that he was even granted a one-on-one interview with President Joe Biden last year.
In response to the partnership, many conservatives swore off Bud Light altogether, and several bars and dining establishments went as far as removing the product off their menus. The drink has since been displaced from its spot as America’s top selling beer, and many distributors all over the country are forecasting massive losses because of the issue.
Recent sales figures show a year-over-year dip of 30 percent in Bud Light sales, with its old patrons moving on to other beers like Miller Lite and Coors Light, which reported a combined 50 percent increase in sales, or Modelo Especial, another beer that has been recently outselling Bud Light for several months.
Mulvaney himself has seemingly moved on from the fiasco, with recent Tiktok posts showing the influencer traveling around Europe.
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