Social media sources suggest that the situation for the beer that is famed for boycotts might possibly get worse.
The little asterisk that can be seen in photographs that are currently making the rounds on Twitter is only a tiny speck of type to the uninitiated on the price tags for Bud Light at a few Costco locations.
The asterisk, however, is known as the “death star” in the members-only warehouse retail chain because, according to Newsweek, when it appears on a label, it indicates that the retailer has no intention of replenishing its stock of the item once it has run out.
Images depict the “death star” on various can and packaging sizes, which could indicate that just specific Bud Light sizes are dwindling at some retailers.
Even Costco is getting out of the game… pic.twitter.com/cUHE0CnPzr
— Brian Henderson (@aztraveldude) July 3, 2023
At Costco this morning, practically giving away Bud Light. pic.twitter.com/tsyymCZjT5
— colleen 🗣 (@plineytheelder) July 1, 2023
COSTCO says… STAR OF DEATH for Bud Light * it will not be restocked. 🍻 pic.twitter.com/hWYTXEckDA
— SHARKINTHEWATER (@s_h_a_r_k_e_y) July 11, 2023
The logo displayed on the Bud Light price tag is in fact referred to as the “death star” by Costco customers, according to Marie Clark, editor of the shopping website CostContessa.
“On Costco price tags, if you see an asterisk in the upper right-hand corner, this indicates an item won’t be restocked,” Clark said in a September 2022 interview on the food-centered website TheKitchn.
“The item might be full price or it might be discounted — an asterisk alone doesn’t tell you more than that. But if it’s something you want and you were thinking, ‘Oh, I’ll come back and get it next week instead,’ you might want to think twice and purchase it now,” she said.
According to data from industry consultant Bump Williams Consulting for the four weeks that ended July 1, Newsweek reported that Bud Light’s revenue decreased by 28% from the same period the previous year.
The volume of Anheuser-Busch InBev beer sales decreased by 31.2 percent.
Despite nationwide price reductions, according to USA Today, Bud Light has dropped to second place for the past two months. Prior to its relationship with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney, Bud Light had been America’s top-selling beer.
In May and June, Modelo Especial Mexican beer had the highest sales nationwide.
According to the New York Post, Dave Williams, vice president of Bump Williams, said the trend shows no signs of changing.
“The Fourth of July is the biggest beer holiday in terms of retail sales and an opportunity to move a lot of volume, and there has been no notable signs where the course has changed for Bud Light,” he said.
“Unless something dynamic happens to bring the lapsed Bud Light customers back into the fold, I don’t think we can expect anything to reverse the course” of Bud Light’s fall, Williams said.
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