Target and Bud Light continue to sponsor events during Pride Month despite widespread calls for boycotts of the brands over their advertising and marketing strategies that cater to LGBTQ audiences.
Target, the nationwide retail chain, and Bud Light parent company Anheuser-Busch faced backlash for their efforts to appeal to the LGBTQ community, only to come under more fire when they tried to backpedal.
But even as they battle the negative publicity, Target and Bud Light haven’t pulled away from this year’s Pride celebrations.
Target is a platinum sponsor of NYC Pride, which requires a $175,000 donation.
And Bud Light’s parent Anheuser-Busch is a sponsor of Pride celebrations in Chicago, San Francisco, Charlotte and elsewhere.
Many other big companies are sticking to their sponsorships as well, including PepsiCo, Starbucks, General Motors and Jeep parent Stellantis — all of which said they have been supporting Pride events for decades and aren’t hesitating to back them again this year.
Target has long marketed to the LGBTQ community.
But it recently found itself at the center of the bull’s-eye when angry customers tipped over Pride displays and threatened staff in some stores.
Target wound up removing certain items, to the dismay of LGBTQ supporters.
Six weeks earlier, transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney revealed on social media that Bud Light had sent her a commemorative can emblazoned with her picture.
Boycott threats immediately followed, fueled by conservative commentators such as Matt Walsh, who has 1.9 million Twitter followers.
Kohl’s, Lego and Southwest Airlines also have taken heat for their LGBTQ-friendly marketing in recent days.
The backlash has produced real consequences.
In the month ending May 13, Bud Light’s US sales were down 23%, according to Bump Williams Consulting.
Target’s shares have plunged 20% since mid-May, wiping away $15 billion in market value, although that’s partly due to investor concerns about inflation’s impact on shoppers.
Some Pride organizations had already distanced themselves from Bud Light because they felt it wasn’t doing enough to support the LGBTQ community beyond the street parties in June.
When Anheuser-Busch’s multi-year sponsorship agreement with Miami Beach Pride ended in 2021, the organization signed a new multi-year contract with Molson Coors.
Robert Legere, director of sponsorships for Miami Beach Pride, noted that Molson Coors’ seltzer brand Vizzy made a $1 million donation to the Human Rights Campaign, an LGBTQ group.
“We don’t just blindly say, ‘Oh sure, we’ll take your money.’ We want to make sure the companies have a clear path to why they want to participate,” Legere said.
Others, like San Francisco Pride, are sticking with Bud Light but bracing themselves for backlash from attendees who think the brand should have done more to support Mulvaney.
Ford, the executive director, said Anheuser-Busch has been a longtime patron and increased its donation to San Francisco Pride this year.
The group relies on its sponsors to keep its two-day, $3 million festival free, Ford said, and its costs for labor and security are skyrocketing.
“There is some tension and we will be watching it. But on a local level, they’ve been a very great supporter,” she said.
In its hometown of St. Louis, Bud Light will sponsor the main stage at Pride and provide the beer for the VIP tent, said Jordan Braxton, the director of diversity, inclusion and outreach for Pride St. Louis.
“Times can be difficult, but they support us and we support them,” Braxton said.
“They’ve been supporting us for years. It’s not our fault that you just woke up and realized it.”
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