Bud Light exec takes leave after boycott calls, reports say
Reports say a Bud Light marketing executive is taking a leave of absence after overseeing a partnership between the company and a transgender influencer, drawing cries for boycotts
NEW YORK AP" target="_self">(AP) — The marketing executive who oversaw a partnership between Bud Light and a transgender influencer is taking a leave of absence after it snowballed into cries for boycotts from some angry customers, according to media reports.
Alissa Heinerscheid, Bud Light’s vice president of marketing, will be replaced by Todd Allen, most recently global vice president of Budweiser, according to reports from Beer Business Daily and Ad Age.
A spokesperson for Bud Light's parent company, Anheuser-Busch InBev, on Saturday did not directly confirm the leave of absence but said Allen as vice president of Bud Light will report directly to Benoit Garbe, U.S. chief marketing officer. The company also made streamlining changes so that its most senior marketers are more closely connected to all of its brand activities.
The partnership between the blue-emblazoned beer brand and Dylan Mulvaney, who has more than 10.8 million followers on social media, hit the internet on April 1. That's when Mulvaney posted a video on Instagram showing herself cracking open a can of Bud Light, one with the hashtag #budlightpartner.