NFL Kickoff calls the future of Bud Light's market share into question
Bud light (BUD) sales are down over 26% from last year, causing their competitors, Coors and Miller Lite (TAP) to capitalize on its loss, gaining a combined 37% in sales from last year. Yahoo Finance's Josh Schafer, Brooke DiPalma, and Alexandra Canal break down the efforts from both companies to take over the beer market this season.
Video Transcript
BROOKE DIPALMA: The NFL season is back. And while many are looking forward to the big game, I have my eye on something else-- beer brands. One marketing expert calling it a beer battle. As you can see right here, Bud Light making a big splash with their new commercial. It's called easy to Sunday. And essentially what they're looking to do here is regain the market share that the company has lost.
- I forgot the sausage.
BROOKE DIPALMA: As you can see here, different fans are playing into this. They're really highlighting that nostalgia factor, that emotion around what it means to be an NFL fan. Once again, Bud Light really looking to make a splash here. They are still a sponsor.
- He goes, there he goes.
JOSH SCHAFER: One thing that stands out to me here, they're sort of getting it what Bud Light has been for the NFL, right? Like, when you go to an NFL tailgate, at least from my experience, you expect there to be Bud Light in the coolers and people to be drinking Bud Light. They've had those cans throughout the years that have the team logos on them.
Everyone loves going to, you know, maybe a New England Patriots game in Foxboro and you get a nice New England Patriots Bud Light can.
BROOKE DIPALMA: Personal experience or a--
JOSH SCHAFER: Just an example of cans that they happen to make.
[INTERPOSING VOICES]
JOSH SCHAFER: Or maybe that you get an Eagles can and screens, cool.
But I wonder what tailgates are going to look like this year, right? I feel like that's a great simple sample size of what people that used to drink Bud Light, that target market is drinking, especially in group culture, too. One person goes and buys the beer, right? Or buys a lot of the beer. One person goes and buys a big pack of 30 beers for a group of people.
If they make that choice to not buy Bud Light and they can't keep that market share, it's going to be interesting to see how it plays out during football season.
BROOKE DIPALMA: And, Josh, I do want to point to the numbers on the screen as you could see Bud Light sales continue to struggle where Miller's Coors Light, Miller Lite continued to perform. Well, Molson Coors certainly benefiting from the sales decline that Anheuser-Busch has received. Molson Coors brand continue to perform well. And Molson Coors actually looking to keep that market share.
They're investing $100 million throughout the rest of 2023, a big number there. And they also have a commercial coming out this fall. They're also going to have a secondary commercial around college. Fans, as you can see right here, they're focusing in on exactly what you were just saying, that tailgate season that people look to go for beers.
And so really, what we're seeing here is a paradigm, you know, really Bud Light looking to regain. Molson looking to hold on to the market share that we're seeing. And multiple professors that I spoke to, they're just saying that this is something they're going to watch. And they're expecting Bud Light to spend more than they ever have before.
ALEXANDRA CANAL: Will it work, especially for those that have given up on Bud Light, have moved on? I just wonder how effective ad campaigns like this is.
JOSH SCHAFER: It's interesting, though, you mentioned how much they're going to spend, Brooke. It does feel like in a sensual fall if you're Bud Light, right? You really didn't gain back that market share in the summer, around key holidays like Memorial Day, 4th of July, Labor Day.
BROOKE DIPALMA: This is probably the last state thing.
JOSH SCHAFER: You can't win back the beer bucket at the bar and the beers in the tailgate scene. It's never coming back. Like, you got these couple months to get back those traditional light beer drinkers. And if you don't get it back this fall, then when is it coming at this point? We're passing a lot of major milestones.
BROOKE DIPALMA: I was going to say, some professors are optimistic that eventually they'll regain some share, but it's not looking too good right now.
