Budweiser was said to be ditching its Clydesdales in an effort to re-brand for a younger generation, but the company clarified on Monday – reassuring fans that while it is pursuing new marketing avenues, the giant horses are staying.
"The story this morning may have left a wrong impression – the Budweiser Clydesdales will, in fact, be featured in next year’s Super Bowl advertising and are also a part of upcoming holiday responsible drinking advertising," Anheuser-Busch said in a statement
obtained by USA Today.
The original story, which detailed Budweiser's slumping popularity and sales among 21- to 27-year-old drinkers, came in this past weekend's
Wall Street Journal.
The report highlighted the growing popularity of so-called craft beers like Lagunitas, which are replacing mainstream American beers at the taps, as well as in bottles and cans.
As Levi's and Converse were forced to do in recent years, Budweiser faces the herculean but not impossible task of retooling its decades-old image. The Clydesdales seemed primed to be retired, and replaced by a mélange of electronic DJ music and college-centric partying. At the same time, it can't run the risk of alienating its older fanbase.
"If you try to be too young and too hip, you lose your base. They’ll say, 'That’s not my Budweiser anymore.' You have to start with a message that resounds with a new generation of people but doesn’t throw off the core drinker," said Tony Ponturo, a former Anheuser-Busch senior marketing executive.
"You’re dealing with a 21- to 27-group that’s open to change. It won’t be their No. 1 brand but it will be in the purchase tent."
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