Could Elon Musk learn from the fall of Bud Light?
The post Could Elon Musk learn from the fall of Bud Light? appeared first on The Drinks Business.
Speculation surrounding Elon Musk’s Tesla challenges are being compared to those faced by AB InBev during boycotts of its Bud Light brand.
In a recent report from Newsweek, the title identified that “a brand tarnished, a customer base alienated and boycotts taking their toll” were among the similarities between Tesla and Bud Light’s struggles.
AB InBev’s troubles began with its Bud Light back in 2023, sparked by the company collaborating with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney. The collaboration then resulted in a highly-publicised backlash and boycott from the brand’s core audience, leading to sales of the beer taking a nosedive.
Warwick Business School professor of marketing Hugh Wilson told reporters: "You can often play to different segments with different messages in different media. But not, it seems, on culture-war issues in the increasingly polarised US."
Reports outlined how the catalyst for Tesla’s issues stemmed from Musk's interplay with politics, with Newsweek stating his financial backing of election campaigns in 2024 as well as becoming the figurehead of the Trump administration's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
As such, Newsweek insisted that “the effects of this have been at least as pronounced as the backlash to Bud Light” and referenced how Tesla's stock has now fallen along with the brand’s global sales.
According to analysis that was shared by the analysts at CreditSights, Tesla has seen volumes tumble and these have been "largely driven by a consumer backlash due to Elon Musk's association with the Trump administration”.
Despite the open assessment, the reports also outlined how the Tesla and Bud Light cases differed in a number of ways with “the most obvious being the ideologies of those lashing out at the companies and those lamenting the consequences”.
Donald Trump posted to Truth Social during the height of the Bud Light boycott: "Money does talk — Anheuser-Busch now understands that." However, last week, the US President's response to the Tesla situation Musk finds himself in was to declare the boycotts and protests "illegal".
Weighing up the situation, Newsweek stated that the cases could still be seen as similar due to both companies having angered what was considered to be their core customer base.
Echoing this, London Business School management and marketing professor Patrick Barwise explained: "Both cases demonstrate, in very different ways, the perils of managing brands in these polarised times.”
db has reached out to both AB InBev and Tesla for comment.
In a recent report from Newsweek, the title identified that “a brand tarnished, a customer base alienated and boycotts taking their toll” were among the similarities between Tesla and Bud Light’s struggles.
AB InBev’s troubles began with its Bud Light back in 2023, sparked by the company collaborating with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney. The collaboration then resulted in a highly-publicised backlash and boycott from the brand’s core audience, leading to sales of the beer taking a nosedive.
Warwick Business School professor of marketing Hugh Wilson told reporters: "You can often play to different segments with different messages in different media. But not, it seems, on culture-war issues in the increasingly polarised US."
Reports outlined how the catalyst for Tesla’s issues stemmed from Musk's interplay with politics, with Newsweek stating his financial backing of election campaigns in 2024 as well as becoming the figurehead of the Trump administration's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
As such, Newsweek insisted that “the effects of this have been at least as pronounced as the backlash to Bud Light” and referenced how Tesla's stock has now fallen along with the brand’s global sales.
According to analysis that was shared by the analysts at CreditSights, Tesla has seen volumes tumble and these have been "largely driven by a consumer backlash due to Elon Musk's association with the Trump administration”.
Despite the open assessment, the reports also outlined how the Tesla and Bud Light cases differed in a number of ways with “the most obvious being the ideologies of those lashing out at the companies and those lamenting the consequences”.
Donald Trump posted to Truth Social during the height of the Bud Light boycott: "Money does talk — Anheuser-Busch now understands that." However, last week, the US President's response to the Tesla situation Musk finds himself in was to declare the boycotts and protests "illegal".
Weighing up the situation, Newsweek stated that the cases could still be seen as similar due to both companies having angered what was considered to be their core customer base.
Echoing this, London Business School management and marketing professor Patrick Barwise explained: "Both cases demonstrate, in very different ways, the perils of managing brands in these polarised times.”
db has reached out to both AB InBev and Tesla for comment. 
