On Wednesday, Anheuser-Busch InBev will release its Q1 results for 2018. Here, just-drinks looks back the events that will have shaped the brewer in its first quarter, the three months to the end of March.
- At the start of the year, an analyst warned that ongoing weakness for AB InBev’s Budweiser brand, along with slowdowns for Michelob and the craft segment, would mean more headaches for the brewer in the US
- Later in the month, A-B InBev teamed up with hockey legend Wayne Gretzky to launch a new campaign for its Budweiser brand, kickstarting its Super Bowl activations. Adverts for the Super Bowl continued with fresh material for the Bud Light ‘Dilly Dilly’ campaign
- Also in January, the company announced that its Budweiser beers in the US were to display a symbol to show consumers they are brewed with 100% renewable electricity
- At the end of the month, A-B InBev revealed it had bought an Israeli technology firm that specialises in consumption analytics. WeissBeerger claims to be able to track on-premise consumption in real time through sensors attached to taps and pumps
- In February, A-B InBev confirmed it had opened a new brewery in central China to produce beer specifically for the country’s growing craft market
- Later in the month, there was news on a new “craft-brewing hub” for Asia Pacific as A-B InBev’s Australian unit announced a AUD10.3m (US$8m) overhaul of its Tasmanian brewing facility
- In March, CEO Carlos Brito said around 8% of the group’s volumes last year now come from the no- or low-alcohol portfolio. The company set a target in 2015, to reach 20% by 2025
- A few days later, A-B InBev rolled out a 7oz pack size for its low-carb beer brand, Michelob Ultra
- In the same month, the company revealed it had acquired a stake in US-based Swish Beverages, best known for its Babe canned rosé wine brand
- Mid-March, the brewer joined several other firms in announcing the successful test of a blockchain project, intended to simplify international shippin.
- At the end of the month, CEO Brito talked to just-drinks about A-B InBev’s new focus on sustainability, and what role sustainability plays in a company of its magnitude
- There was bad news for Bud Light at the end of the month when an analyst warned the brand had borne the brunt of accelerating volume declines in US mainstream lager last year.
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