‘Never Go Woke': Veteran-Owned Beer Brand Opens Shop in Virginia Amid Ongoing Bud Light Woes

Bottles of Anheuser-Busch Budweiser and Grupo Modelo beers are displayed at the Chandi Wine and Spirits store in Miami, Fla., on Jan. 31, 2013. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

A veteran-owned beer brand will be opening up shop in Virginia, heralding a substantial change in the business environment as consumers welcome patriotic brands that focus on delivering the best products for customers instead of advocating an ideology.

Armed Forces Brewing Company is a military tribute beer company that will set up its headquarters and first brewing facility in the city of Norfolk, Virginia, the state’s Republican governor, Glenn Youngkin, announced in a July 7 press release. The new venture will create 47 jobs. The business plans on employing at least 70 percent of its company-wide workforce from U.S. veterans.

On social media, the company’s announcement triggered comparisons with Bud Light whose sales have been tanking ever since the firm used a transgender influencer for promotions.

“They‘ll never go woke, so they’ll never be broke,” said one user on Instagram regarding the Armed Forces Brewing Company’s launch. On Facebook, a user commented: “Keep up the Great Work. Time to show Anheuser-Busch what real Beer should represent.” Anheuser-Busch is the parent company of Bud Light.

Armed Forces Brewing Company CEO Alan Beal expressed enthusiasm at opening the company’s “flagship brewery” at Norfolk—a city he said has “a large population of veterans, active-duty military, and their families.”

“Governor Youngkin called me and encouraged our team to take a close look at what Virginia has to offer, and we did. This is now our home base, and we’re committed to employing veterans and playing a vital part of the patriotic community in Norfolk.”

Bud Light’s Woes Continue

Meanwhile, Bud Light’s campaign to attract customers since the transgender debacle has not gone well and is resulting in more negative reactions. On Sunday, the brand uploaded a 10-second clip on Twitter showing a woman eating watermelon as strong winds sent paper plates and Bud Light cans flying. “It’s fine, this is fine,” said the post.

The video clip is getting scathing criticism. “Is this a video of your marketing department?” Seth Weather, CEO of Ultra Right Beer,  stated in a July 9 tweet.

“How is this even the same company that brought us ‘Wazzuppp’ and ‘Dilly Dilly’? Those campaigns were so money,” said army veteran John Miller.

“It’s so much fun watching Bud Light get dragged in every ad. But they still won’t abandon the woke nonsense. Keep after ‘em boys,” another user said.

According to a poll by YouGov, Bud Light has slipped out from the list of the most popular beers in America. In second quarter 2022, Bud Light was ranked ninth on the list. But in second quarter 2023, the brand has fallen to the 15th position.

A six-pack of Bud Light sits on a shelf for sale at a convenience store in New York City, on July 26, 2018. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

After usurping Bud Light’s top spot in May, Constellation Brands’ Modelo Especial continued its streak last month as the top-selling beer brand in the United States. Modelo Especial sales increased by 8.5 percent from a year back, while Anheuser-Busch’s Bud Light and Budweiser dropped by 28 percent and 11.7 percent, respectively.

In mid-May, an HSBC analyst had downgraded Anheuser-Busch’s stock due to the “Bud Light crisis” and suggested that there may be “deeper problems” at the management level.

“The way this Bud Light crisis came about a month ago, management’s response to it and the loss of unprecedented volume and brand relevance raises many questions,” the analyst stated.

Recently, Ben and Jerry’s has been facing heat after claiming that the “U.S. exists on stolen Indigenous land,” in their July 4 Independence Day greeting. Following the divisive message, people have lambasted the brand, and have called for its boycott. It remains to be seen whether the brand will suffer financial consequences for alienating a big chunk of its market.

Rise of Conservative Brands

The launch of Armed Forces Brewing Company is happening amid a wider consumer backlash against big brands which are pushing a leftist progressive agenda on everyday customers.

This has led to many companies embracing the emergent market demand for conservative, patriotic brands. On June 2, NBA player Jonathan Isaac announced the launch of his UNITUS apparel brand which was pitched as an alternative to retail brands that are becoming woke.

“You have companies that are in that field who have made a conscious decision to either attack or undermine Christian values, conservative values, and things like that,” Isaac told Prager U’s Amala Ekpunobi for the documentary “Unwoke Inc.”

“And I think they have the free choice to do so, as much as I disagree. But I feel that we also have the freedom to create what we want to create.”

Earlier this month, Colombier Acquisition Corp., a publicly traded acquisition company, announced plans to merge with the online marketplace PublicSq and make the company public.

PublicSq “provides that solution for an emerging parallel economy full of patriotic consumers that are ready to spend their money with companies that respect and share their values,” said Michael Seifert, founder and chief executive officer of PublicSq, according to a June 30 press release.

In an interview with Fox News in April, Seifert pointed out that “there are so many entities that, for whatever reason, decided to cater to messaging that only attracts 10 percent of the country when there’s a massive cohort of 100-plus million Americans feeling like their values have been left in the dust.”

Many brands are expected to enter the fray in the coming days given the market demand for non-political companies.