Coors Light appears resolved in its decision to remain the title sponsor of the Denver Pride Parade, despite potential backlash from customers and controversy surrounding its competitor, Bud Light, over the company’s collaboration with transgender activist Dylan Mulvaney.
The Coors Light Denver Pride Parade, which expects 15,000 people marching and at least another 100,000 watching on Sunday, is also sponsored by dozens of other companies including JPMorgan Chase & Co., Verizon, Visa, Walmart, Amazon, Target and Starbucks.
Rex Fuller, CEO of the Gay Lesbian Bisexual and Transgender Community Center of Colorado, which organizes the parade, told Axios Denver that no sponsors of the Denver Pride Parade have expressed concern about potential backlash or criticism for their sponsorship of the event.
“This is kind of the hard part of allyship,” Fuller told Axios. “We are in a time period when it can be quite fashionable in some corners to pretty openly express homophobic, transphobic (sentiments) and racism, and I think that can make this uncomfortable at some points.”
Adam Collins, chief communications and corporate affairs officer for Molson Coors, the parent company of Coors Light, told Fox News Digital, “At the end of a long day or the start of a great night, everyone deserves to feel comfortable having a drink and being themselves.”
“That’s why beer, wine and spirits companies like ours have supported Pride for decades, why we’ll do so in 2023 and why we’ll continue to do so for decades to come,” he added.
A collaboration in the spring between Mulvaney and Bud Light has led to backlash from consumers, with some stores being forced to give away the beer for free, and Bud Light buying back expired beers from wholesalers, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Before the controversy, Bud Light was America’s No. 1 selling beer, but since the partnership, the company’s sales have dropped more than 20 percent.
Target has also seen a hit to its sales after it started displaying LGBTQ+ and Pride Month advertisements and products like “tuck-friendly” women’s swimsuits and children’s apparel.
