Top Anheuser-Busch marketing executive is leaving after collapse in Bud Light sales

Beer giant Anheuser-Busch says its head of U.S. marketing is leaving, months after its Bud Light brand lost its position as the top beer brand in the country.

The company said U.S. Chief Marketing Officer Benoit Garbe will leave at the end of 2023 “in order to embark on a new chapter in his career,” with U.S. Chief Commercial Officer Kyle Norrington taking charge of marketing activities.

The company said other sales leaders will report directly to Anheuser-Busch CEO Brendan Whitworth.

“These senior leadership changes will accelerate our return to growth as we continue to focus on what we do best — brewing great beer for everyone and earning our place in moments that matter,” Whitworth said in an emailed statement.

He also said the changes would reduce layers of management.

Bud Light lost its U.S. leadership title to Modelo Especial over the summer. Sales of the brand have been falling for years while Modelo’s parent, Constellation Brands, gained steam and marketed itself more successfully to younger beer drinkers.

Bud Light was also the target of a sharp backlash after it partnered with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney in April for a sponsored Instagram post that ran the weekend of the NCAA basketball men’s and women’s national championships.

Conservative politicians and influencers said they would boycott the brand in response and shared videos of themselves throwing the beer away, pouring it out, or shooting cans.