Bud Light is not #1 anymore and Target has had physical damage.

For the first time since 2001, Bud Light is no longer the best-selling beer in America according to, The Wall Street Journal. While it has been losing market share for a long time, the slide was accelerated by a boycott after a transgender influencer posted an image on Instagram of a personalized can made for them by the brand.

An even more extreme reaction came to Target stores when an in-store display offered products relating to Pride Month. “Since introducing this year’s collection, we’ve experienced threats impacting our team members’ sense of safety and well-being while at work,” Target said in a statement. ”Given these volatile circumstances, we are making adjustments to our plans, including removing items that have been at the center of the most significant confrontational behavior.”

You may be wondering, why is this news or even interesting? Fights like this have been going on for a long time and the politics of it are…well… you know.

But in the branding and retail universes, this has never happened, it’s totally new. Until now, Pride Month, LGBTQ+ and all related issues were the undisputed territory of left-leaning consumers. Studies consistently showed that lefty consumers thought brands should have a position on social issues and were failing in their duty if they didn’t advocate for what they believed.

Conversely, politically right-leaning consumers felt that corporations shouldn’t speak out. Those consumers were less likely to believe that corporations have a role to play in political/social conversations. When corporations spoke up, right-leaning consumers tuned them out and bought the products even if they disagreed with the politics on display.

The Bud Light and Target stores controversies say the days of right-wing consumers whistling past the displays of LGBTQ+-related merchandise and buying other products are over.

What’s Next

Until now, it was much easier for a brand to speak up about social issues because one side cared and the other didn’t. But now, choosing a side is going to be much more risky. Taking a strong position on a social issue has a much higher likelihood now of alienating consumers and affecting profitability.

Conversely, it also means that there is an opportunity in the market for brands that appeal to demographics that include many right-wing consumers. Two young brands, Own Boss and GruntStyle, sell products that emphasize laborers, entrepreneurship and patriotism in ways that appeal to voters who are right-wing. They are a likely template for other brands selling other products that target consumers who are likely to vote Republican and favor right-leaning positions.

With politics and social issues long having intruded on the dinner table, it’s a wonder that it took so long for controversy in retail stores. Now that it’s happened to two big brands, it’s clear that right-wing consumers will use their wallets as left-wing consumers have been doing for years.

Target and Bud Light had no way to see their problems coming, but retailers and brands that don’t adjust now don’t have an excuse. More consumers are now likely to demand that brands and retailers take positions on social and political issues. But now it will be a much bigger and more controversial issue than it ever was before.