NASCAR Xenophobes, Rev-up your Hate!
For the most part those that have a decided dislike - bordering on dementia - for Toyota playing within NASCAR multi-billion dollar playground have lowered their voices and haven’t appeared with the same regularity as they did during the 2007 season.
I’m thinkin’ if the current and latest mega-billion dollar business merger rumored to be in the works sees fruition it might might refuel them and see a few of them crawl scurry from under the woodwork into the light of the day.
American icon Anheuser-Busch is reported to be the target of an unsolicited (read hostile) takeover bid by Belgian-Brazilian rival InBev.
InBev said the proposal was for $65 per share in cash - a deal that would be worth $46bn. Anheuser said that it would “review the merits” of a possible tie-up that would combine InBev’s brands, including Stella Artois, with Anheuser’s.
Despite InBev’s claims - they’ve “proposed to reflect Anheuser-Busch’s heritage in the new company’s name and has committed itself to keep all of Anheuser’s US breweries open” - you still have to wonder if the iconic Clydesdales will be replaced by Belgian Draft horses and the Bud logo and paint scheme on Kasey Kahne’s #9 Dodge will be replaced by the (foreign?) logo depicted above.
On the other hand, maybe, just maybe I,m thinkin’ too much.
ADDITIONAL NOTES: Missouri Gov. Matt Blunt already has his panties in a bunch and has ordered the state’s Department of Economic Development to find a way to stop the merger. Yeah, whatever guy, as if some local political group has the power to stop international mergers.
Funny what happens when an “iconic” brand comes under the gun of a merger proposal. I don’t recall Miller Brewing becoming SAB Miller, as in South African Brewery/Miller or Coors brewing becoming Molson/Coors eliciting too much political and popular resistance.
I also don’t recall Gov Blunt or his predecessors raising too much of a stink when AB bought 50% stakes in the foriegn brands of Grupo Modelo (Corona, Negra Modelo, Pacifico), Tsingtao, Redhook, and Widmer Brothers to bring them under the AB umbrella.
I guess the outrage only works one way.
Technorati Tags: Anheuser-Busch, Stella Artois, InBev, NASCAR, Kasey Kahne, Sports, Motorsports, Full Throttle
It is quite interesting that Miller and Coors both sold to foreign owners, yet this one is so different. It’s protectionism, especially in an election year.
Bingo Matt! It’s an election year.
Miller and Coors don’t carry the heritage and tradition that Anheuser does … not even close to it, as a matter of fact … which is why InBev is willing to offer the largest cash purchase in history.
To add to that, what you have here is the world’s largest brewer attempting to buyout America’s largest brewer. And, to top it off, the Busch family themselves own less than five percent of the company, so it’s really not even their decision.
Blah, I’m actually tired of talking on this subject tonight, I just wrote an article about it a few hours ago.
SO much blather over so little impact. Why does Inbev want to buy AB? Because of their market share, advertising exposure and profits. Will they change all that if they acquire the brand? Not likely. Will they convert the Cardinals’ stadium to a soccer pitch and toss out the Cardinals? Or withdraw sponsorship from NASCAR??
Maybe Budweiser will start to taste like real beer with a little European TLC.
ditto what George said.
In a takeover like this the new purchaser is hardly going to alter a business model that is already working.
For starters … European beer for the most part tastes like expired mouthwash. Secondly, if you think that an InBev takeover doesn’t entail it’s fair share of layoffs to a St. Louis (and American) economy that’s already taken a beating, then you’re blind.
And, for the record, Anheuser doesn’t own Busch Stadium. The stadium is owned by the St. Louis Cardinals, which is owned by Bill DeWitt and Fred Hanser. The old stadium was named Busch in honor of Auggie Busch, who originally owned the team.
Don’t know much about the St. Louis economy, but I do know that if they want to maintain the same level of production of Bud it won’t be the working guys who get laid off. Management, surely. My comment about Busch stadium was a reference to their advertising and promotional efforts. After the purchase do you expect to see Stella Artois all over the stadium or Bud? We both know the answer to that question.
The answer to the selling of America is not the imposition of artificial barriers but reviving the economy by removing most of the governmental bureaucratic obstacles to growth, and making the dollar stronger so these companies are able to buy others as opposed to getting bought. When you have an answer to that (cause I don’t!) let me know.
You mean like “wind-fall” taxes on “Big Oil” George?
Tim - “For starters … European beer for the most part tastes like expired mouthwash.”
American beer doesn’t?
I’ve had a lot of free drinking nights by blind-folding someone, placing five different beers before someone who’s already had 1-2 beers and asking if they could tell which beer was which.
I’ve never lost yet. It ALL tastes the same once a beer or two has been consumed.
Eh, Marc … I beg to differ. Just the other week I was at the bar with a large group of friends. I was already 2 sheets to the wind when the waitress brought out our next round. Being the Budweiser drinker that I am, I took one sip of my beer and immediately spit it out … she had handed me a Sam Adams.
George, I understand your point about the promos, but perhaps I have a different perspective being that I’m actually from the StL area. Anheuser is so strongly embedded into our systems, it’d probably make you sick. I’ve actually seen friends of mine throw down into an actual fist fight because one of them brought Miller Lite to a party. Yes, it’s that bad …
So, while the overall picture may not change to the typical eye, us Saint Louisan’s are probably going to be more apt to notice any subtle change, that being where the loss of tradition comes into play. For instance, will they still advertise the Clydesdales as they do now? Incase you’re not sure of the significance of the Clydesdales, they delivered the first case of Budweiser to Saint Louis after the prohibition, and the image has stuck ever since.
As for the economy stuff, I’m no expert. But, I do know that St. Louis has been dealt a bad hand as of late in the job market. Missouri has one of the largest banking markets in America, but with all of the foreclosures, etc. the last couple years, nearly every lender in the area has cutback on personnel or shut the doors altogether. Ford and Chrysler were also two of the largest employers in the state. Ford recorded record losses causing them to cutback, and when Chrysler was bought out, they immediately began cutting back on the St. Louis plant.
Tim, then your one case out of a hundred, the outlier as it were.
Tim, I agree with the image of AB and Bud as the “All American Brand” and it does hurt my ego when foreign nationals are buying up our country wholesale. I spent a weekend when looking at Embry-Riddle with one of my children and was impressed with everything we saw, especially the people, albeit in our limited time frame.
I didn’t intend to make light of the city’s economic plight, you can just about write that scenario in any urban area. But how do we stop the unintended consequences of a poorly run economy, weak dollar, and skyrocketing oil prices? Gives me pause as to what my children and grand children will have to deal with.
Read your article at your site, nicely done.
I know you’re not trying to make light of the city’s economy, George … nor do I really think anyone is. To me, it’s one of the important details that is probably overlooked by many people that write things like this off as “much adieu about nothing” …
Besides, it gave me something non-NASCAR to debate! lol. Thanks for the compliment, though.