Bud Light VP Alissa Heinerscheid explains how she brought her value of inclusivity to the brand
Bud Light VP Alissa Heinerscheid spoke on a podcast, where she expressed disdain for how Bud Light has been perceived in the past.
Bud Light's vice president of marketing discussed in a recent interview how she was inspired to update the "fratty" and "out of touch" humor of the beer company with inclusivity.
Alissa Heinerscheid did an interview with the podcast "Make Yourself At Home" on March 30, where she discussed her work in transforming the Bud Light brand.
"I’m a businesswoman, I had a really clear job to do when I took over Bud Light, and it was ‘This brand is in decline, it’s been in a decline for a really long time, and if we do not attract young drinkers to come and drink this brand there will be no future for Bud Light,'" Heinerscheid said.
Heinerscheid's comments have gone viral days later, after Bud Light and its parent company Anheuser-Busch received backlash for partnering with transgender activist Dylan Mulvaney. The beer maker ignited a firestorm earlier this month when it celebrated Mulvaney's "365 Days of Girlhood," by sending Mulvaney custom-made cans featuring the influencer's face. Mulvaney said the cans were her "most prized possession" on Instagram with a post featuring "#budlightpartner." A video then featured Mulvaney in a bathtub drinking a Bud Light beer as part of the campaign.
BUD LIGHT SAYS PACT WITH TRANS ACTIVIST DYLAN MULVANEY HELPS ‘AUTHENTICALLY CONNECT WITH AUDIENCES’
Bud Light VP Alissa Heinerscheid explains how she brought her personal values to the Bud Light brand.
After the host asked Heinerscheid about how her background, perspective, and values impacted the Bud Light brand, the Bud Light vice president said, "I’m a businesswoman, I had a really clear job to do when I took over Bud Light, and it was ‘This brand is in decline, it’s been in a decline for a really long time, and if we do not attract young drinkers to come and drink this brand there will be no future for Bud Light.’"
She added further that she had a "super clear" mandate that "to evolve and elevate this incredibly iconic brand." She said that what she "brought" to the brand was a "belief" that to evolve and elevate means to incorporate "inclusivity, it means shifting the tone, it means having a campaign that’s truly inclusive, and feels lighter and brighter and different, and appeals to women and to men."
BUD LIGHT SAYS PACT WITH TRANS ACTIVIST DYLAN MULVANEY HELPS ‘AUTHENTICALLY CONNECT WITH AUDIENCES’
Heinerscheid suggested that "representation is sort of at the heart of evolution, you have got to see people who reflect you in the work."
She then disparaged the work of Bud Light’s past branding.
"We had this hangover, I mean Bud Light had been kind of a brand of fratty, kind of out of touch humor, and it was really important that we had another approach," she said.
Anheuser-Busch set social media ablaze when beer juggernaut Bud Light celebrated transgender activist Dylan Mulvaney’s "365 Days of Girlhood" with a polarizing promotion. (Instagram)
BUD LIGHT SAYS PACT WITH TRANS ACTIVIST DYLAN MULVANEY HELPS ‘AUTHENTICALLY CONNECT WITH AUDIENCES’
Mulvaney's posts caused backlash for Anheuser Busch, but the beer company defended the partnership.
"Anheuser-Busch works with hundreds of influencers across our brands as one of many ways to authentically connect with audiences across various demographics. From time to time we produce unique commemorative cans for fans and for brand influencers, like Dylan Mulvaney. This commemorative can was a gift to celebrate a personal milestone and is not for sale to the general public," an Anheuser-Busch spokesperson told Fox News.
Trans woman Dylan Mulvaney promotes Nike sports bras on Instagram as a paid partner for the brand. (Fox Gif)
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In a previous interview with Forbes, Heinerscheid claimed that "female representation is a personal passion point of mine."
Since the controversy broke out, Bud Light's related social media accounts have been silent. Bud Light has not posted on Instagram to its 377,000 followers since March 30 and the brand’s 311,000 Twitter followers have not seen any posts since April 1. Additionally, the beer brand has not posted to its over 7.5 million Facebook followers since March 30.
Brian Flood contributed to this report.