Actions have consequences, as retail giant Target is finding out. After rolling out an extensive, shocking line of clothes and merchandise—some of it marketed to kids—to celebrate LGBTQ Pride Month, the company’s stock tumbled almost three percent Wednesday and has plunged over 11 percent in the last five days. It’s too early to see if the trend will last, but it certainly seems as if the chain is experiencing its own Bud Light moment.
Speaking of Bud Light, parent Anheuser-Busch’s stock has dropped almost 14 percent since the April announcement of the brewing giant’s marketing partnership with transgender TikTok personality Dylan Mulvaney. Get woke, go broke.
Target's stock is down 10.88% in the last week. Keep it up. pic.twitter.com/JT666jktUh
— Rosie's Raytheon Refund (@DarnelSugarfoo) May 24, 2023
These are some serious numbers. Per Fox Business:
Shares [for Target] slipped 2.7% on Wednesday and have dropped more than 9% this month, with 6% of that decline this week alone, as tracked by Dow Jones Market Data Group. That amounts to $4.2 billon in market value.
Over the same time frame, the S&P 500 has dropped just over 1%.
As we’ve reported, Target faced consumer backlash after promoting LBGTQ clothing including “tucking” swimwear for concealing male anatomy (not to be left out, there are “light binding” items as well) in the children’s section, sexually-themed books for kids, and a clothing line designed by UK-based Satanist designer Abprallen. Lovely.
This viral video helped spur consumer pushback:
Target has gone completely woke. They’re now selling tucking and binding clothing for little kids. pic.twitter.com/MQZ1YDhm0f
— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) May 23, 2023
Here’s one that hasn’t garnered as much attention yet but is equally shocking. They’re marketing this stuff to kids. Be sure to watch the end where she reveals the size of the Fourth of July display, showing you where the company’s priorities lie:
Keep boycotting Target period pic.twitter.com/wiNcZwtvSX
— I Meme Therefore I Am 🇺🇸 (@ImMeme0) May 24, 2023
I reported in April that Anheuser-Busch’s stock price had dropped mainly due to the Mulvaney controversy, and the company had shed $5 billion in market cap at the time—but I also pointed out that it was still near its 52-week high and would probably soon recover. While my track record is infinitely better than Jim Cramer’s, I got that one wrong. Bud Light sales have continued to fall disastrously and have shown no sign of recovering. In fact, now they’re trying to buy back their own beer because no one else will.
It’s a beautiful thing.
Said Beer Business Daily editor and publisher Harry Schuhmacher:
The whole industry is in shock. Even Bud’s competitors aren’t really dancing on the grave because they know it could have happened to them
This particular promotion just really struck a chord. It was just a bridge too far, apparently, for consumers… we’re in week six and it doesn’t look like it’s getting any better.
In fact, the numbers just keep getting a little worse every week… down in the 25% area. And their competitors are up almost just as much, and that’s continuing through today.
After seeing Nike not only survive but thrive after it entered a divisive partnership with former pro quarterback and agitator Colin Kaepernick, I never in a million years thought that Anheuser-Busch would suffer any serious consequences because, among other reasons, they produce many different brands of brew. You might think, “To hell with Bud Light, give me a Stella,” but not realize that (the over-rated) Stella Artois is owned by A-B too, so your switch accomplished nothing. And, as RedState‘s Deputy Managing Editor Susie Moore pointed out Wednesday in a powerful op-ed, it’s a lot easier to decline a watery beer than it is to give up the convenience of Target.
That being said, the backlash has clearly caused Target to rethink its ways. The company held an emergency meeting over the controversy and decided to remove some of the offensive items from some stores—especially in southern states—and make the disturbing displays less prominent in others. They claim the redecorating is due to threats, but that doesn’t explain why the items are suddenly unavailable online, either.
Update–Target is removing some Pride items from the stores AND the website, per company statement. Why would they include online if they were only reacting to violent confrontations in the stores? https://t.co/jMfH5Uiqis https://t.co/wARVr5KmG4 pic.twitter.com/Cpn94OET09
— Megan Basham (@megbasham) May 24, 2023
Will their stock price continue to nosedive? I just learned the hard way not to make predictions on this stuff. But I will say this: Conservatives should gain hope over these developments. The corporations have heard—they probably won’t listen, but that’s their problem. Regular folk have made them pay a price, and if they’re going to keep thumbing their nose at us, we should just keep making them pay more. And more, and more.
Can you keep this stuff away from our kids, corporate America? Is that really too much to ask?
I’m not Mr. Boycott—I don’t stand in picket lines outside company headquarters chanting slogans (like many Republican voters, I’m a little busy raising a family and working). That being said, I vote with my wallet, and I haven’t bought a Gillette product since 2019 after they basically told me they hate me.
When they show you who they are, believe them, and shop accordingly.
See also:
The North Face Follows the Lead of Bud Light and Target in Revolting Normal People
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