Business

<< Previous   of   Next >>   ADVERTISEMENT   CONTACT THE HERALD Mike Benbow, Business Editor benbow@heraldnet.com   Published: Monday, July 21, 2008 What could the Anheuser-Busch buyout mean? By Mike Benbow Been there, done that, got the T-shirt. Like a lot of Americans, that's the story of my life. I've visited a lot of communities in my 56 years and my routine usually involves seeing at least one place that's meaningful or symbolic to me and buying a T-shirt or a baseball cap. In D.C., it was the Vietnam Memorial to look for friends on the wall. In Baltimore, it was the National Aquarium. In Boston, it was the Old North Church and about 10 other historic places. In St Louis, it sure as heck wasn't the Arch. I know the weird-looking Arch is supposed to have something to do with American history, but instead I chose to visit a company established in America before the Civil War. Specifically, I went to Anheuser-Busch, home of Budweiser, the King of Beers. The museum there with its historic beer wagons was pretty cool, but my prized possession is the picture I got posing with a real Clydesdale. The Polaroid cost me a couple bucks, but it was worth every penny. Just the horse itself was a magnificent animal. Strap a leather harness on him, hitch on a wagon carrying a few barrels of beer, add some snow, and you've got fine art. OK. I know the breed was established in Scotland. But I still think that the Budweiser Clydesdales are as American as apple pie. And Budweiser. Well. Let me just say this, "Thanks for the memories." Who doesn't have something to say about Bud? Even if you hate the beer, you at least have to like some of the commercials. The Bud Bowl, the Talking Frogs and the Whassup Guys. The ads have been clever and smart and, like the Clydesdales, all about being an American. And that's why Carlos Brito, chief executive for InBev, which offered $52 billion for Anheuser-Busch, wanted the beer company. With the deal, InBev will become the largest beer maker in the world, with more than 200 brands. With Anheuser-Busch, Brito's company is very likely to become an even more massive moneymaker. And Carlos Brito, not August Busch IV, will become the King of Beers. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that Bud is the world's best beer. You could easily make that claim for quite a few others, including some of the ones already made by InBev, such as Beck's or Stella Artois. For that matter, Everett's Scuttlebutt is a good brew. What I'm saying is that I hate what's clearly an American icon being owned by a Belgian company. That wouldn't be far afield from having EADS of France build the next refueling tanker for the U.S. Air Force. InBev already owns signature beers from several countries: Labatt from Canada, Beck's from Germany and Bass from the United Kingdom. The ownership bothers me, but I'm also concerned about what I think this will mean for Bud. "What consumers care is that their Bud will always be their Bud, and that's what we're committed to, not only the product, the quality, the beer ... but also the heritage, the breweries, who brews the beers and everything that's connected to the breweries," Brito said after the deal. He was spot on. It sounded so good, I wondered if Anheuser-Busch marketers had ghostwritten it for him. His speech sounded good, but it didn't sound like what corporations actually do. Remember New Coke? For the younger set, let me remind you that it was a sweeter version established in 1985 that was intended to replace the original formula. I hated it because it tasted like Pepsi. So did millions of other people. Coca Cola was forced to bring back real Coke. Brito says he expects that in the next three years, he will cut $1.5 billion in costs at Anheuser-Busch, which is what corporations do best. I'm sure he'll start by doing a little staff structuring, maybe make the Anheuser-Busch folks fly coach instead of business class. Then he'll tackle the company's supply chain, hoping to squeeze out some more expenses. He'll also want to cut back on the ad budget. That would be dumb because the ads are the reason Bud has 48 percent of the U.S. beer market. Brito says there are no plans to save a little money by cutting the marketing. He says that now. But it won't be long and he may sing another tune. Then he'll start thinking about how if he changed the Bud formula, he might sell more beer in Asia or even in Europe. It's what corporations do. Carlos, I'm beggin' you. Stop at tinkering with the supply chain. Stick with your promises about not messing with our beer. And while you're at it, don't mess with the ads, either. Mike Benbow: 425-339-3459; benbow@heraldnet.com.

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