• Partnership with trans influencer Mulvaney proved disastrous for Bud Light
• Parent company Anheuser Busch saw its market capitalization reduced by $6 billion
• Sources say senior company executives were unaware of the campaign

The ill-fated marketing campaign between beer giant Bud Light and trans influencer Dylan Mulvaney was launched without the approval of senior executives at parent company Anheuser Busch (AB), it has been claimed.

The partnership unveiled on April 2 saw Mulvaney, a biological man who began transitioning in 2021, promote America’s top-selling beer to 11 million social media followers in a series of partnership posts.

Mulvaney’s posts showed the influencer sitting in a tub and drinking from personalized cans emblazoned with her face and pro-LGBTQ language.

But the posts, which were never shared by Bud Light or Anheuser Busch’s social media profiles, sparked widespread furor with several high-profile celebrities vowing to protest the swill.

The backlash has reduced AB’s total stock value by $6 billion over the past 10 days, and the company continues to remain silent except for a short statement confirming the partnership.

Two AB sources have since told the Daily Wire that ‘no one at a higher level was aware of what was going on’, claiming the decision to include Mulvaney in the campaign was made by an ’employee of lower level” and was an “error”. ‘.

DailyMail.com has contacted AB for comment.

Last week, AB shared a short statement in response to the backlash saying she supported Bud Light’s decision to work with Mulvaney, who has risen to internet fame over the past year.

“Anheuser-Busch works with hundreds of influencers across our brands as one of many ways to authentically connect with audiences of diverse demographics,” the statement read.

“From time to time we produce unique commemorative cans for fans and for brand influencers, such as Mulvaney. This commemorative can was a gift to celebrate a personal milestone and is not for sale to the general public.

Their doubling has only further enraged customers – and likely played a part in Anheuser-Busch’s recent market woes.

The disastrous marketing campaign came just days after Bud Light’s vice president said she wanted to trade the brand’s “fratty” reputation for “inclusiveness”.

Alissa Heinerscheid spoke on a business podcast on March 30 to claim that Anheuser-Busch beer has been “in decline for a very long time” – despite being the No. 1 American beer with a market share of over 13%.

The Harvard graduate said it was essential to attract more women and young drinkers because otherwise “there will be no future for Bud Light”.

Although Heinerscheid says the Bud Light brand is in decline, it remains parent company Anheuser Busch’s flagship beer.

The Belgian multinational, the world’s largest brewer, saw its profits beat expectations by more than 7% in the first quarter of 2023.

It announced last month that its base profit – earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization – was $4.95 billion.

Heinerscheid previously worked in AB marketing before becoming vice president of Bud Light in July last year.

Her LinkedIn profile proudly states that she is the “first woman to lead the biggest beer brand in the industry”.

She told the Make Yourself at Home podcast that she believes Bud Light needs to incorporate “inclusivity, that means changing the tone, that means having a campaign that’s really inclusive, and feels lighter, brighter, and different. , and attracts women and men”. ‘

Heinerscheid said she had a “super clear” mandate “to evolve and elevate this incredibly iconic brand.”

She criticized Bud Light’s old marketing strategy as dated and male-oriented.

“We had this hangover, I mean Bud Light had been kind of fratty humor, kind of disconnected, and it was really important that we had another approach,” the Wharton grad explained.

Asked by the host what she brought to the Bud Light table, Heinerscheid said: “I had a very clear job to do when I took over Bud Light, and it was ‘this brand is in decline, it has been in decline for a very long time, and if we don’t attract young drinkers to come and drink this brand, there will be no future for Bud Light.

Photos posted to Heinerscheid’s Facebook account have since circulated showing the vice president of Bud Light exploding condoms and drinking bottles of lager at one of Harvard’s many social club parties.