It’s been more than two months since Bud Light caused a bunch of adult babies to have a full-on tantrum simply by partnering with a trans influencer. For those who don’t remember, Anheuser Busch — the company behind the #1 beer — partnered with Dylan Mulvaney for a paid promotion. It was pretty harmless but plenty of right-wing Americans decided it was just one step too far.
Some of the more memorable reactions to the partnership included Kid Rock taking literal shots at cans of the beer which he presumably went out and paid for. We also saw country singer Travis Tritt banning the alcohol on his tour, and even Ben Shapiro stuck his oar in.
However, all the uproar and tantrums have had a pretty negative effect on the brand’s sales as what was once America’s top beer has now lost its number one spot to a Mexican competitor. The mass boycott from conservatives has led to a 24% decrease in sales allowing for beer #2 — aka Modelo — to come out on top for once.
So who owns Modelo?
Modelo beer has been around for a while, a quick Google will tell you that the brand is owned by Grupo Modelo, a brewery based in Mexico that exports to most countries (although there’s more to it than that). It is also known for its Corona beer – which saw a massive sales slump in 2020 due to the Corona virus outbreak. So it turns out that the Modelo brand probably knows how those at Anheuser Busch are feeling right now considering they too have lost sales because of public stupidity.
There has been a general trend in the buying preferences of Americans that has seen a shift toward Mexican and Latin American beers. However, this massive drop in Bud Light sales has definitely come about from the recent controversies. But is Grupo Modelo even that conservative? The truth is that the company has benefitted simply by staying silent on the issue, whether or not its values align with the right-wing boycotters can’t be confirmed.
Of course, the funniest part about all of this is that these boycotts really aren’t doing anything at all. If you do a little bit of research and follow the breadcrumbs all the way to the top you’ll actually find out that Anheuser-Busch pretty much owns Grupo Modelo as the companies merged in 2013. That’s right, the new number one beer in America is still owned by the same group that is being boycotted right now. Although a group called Constellation Brands was transferred the distribution rights, but only within the U.S. so they sort of do and don’t own the company (it’s a little confusing.)
So in truth, Grupo Modelo probably has the same values as Bud Light and both have the same opinion as their parent company – Anheuser-Busch. Oh – and the whole right-wing boycott hasn’t really achieved much so far and is just another classic example of the right wing acting like big babies.