Beer ads!! Gosh they’ve been sexist – bikinis, butts and boobs. And yet, women were among the first beer brewers in history. For years, the beer industry did everything possible to alienate the population half that helped it to begin.
Miller Lite was one of these brands, but this International Women’s Day, it is making amends (and reconnecting with the half of the population it now realises it needs).
The campaign, by agency Alma, is turning beer’s Bad $#!T into Good $#!T. Literally. Miller Lite is using sexist beer ads as compost to make fertiliser to grow the hops to make its beer. The campaign commercial features producer, comedian, actor, and arbiter of good $#!T, Ilana Glazer, who explains the problem, the solution and the process.
“This Women’s History Month, Miller Lite wanted to recognise that without women, there would be no beer,” stated Elizabeth Hitch, senior director of marketing for Miller Lite. “To honour this we wanted to acknowledge the missteps in representation of women in beer advertising by cleaning up not just our $#!T, but the whole industry’s $#!T while benefiting the future of women and beer.”
Here’s how Miller Lite is turning Bad $#!T to Good $#!T:
1. Collect the Bad $#!T: Miller Lite has been collecting their (and all of the beer industry’s) outdated, age-old, no-thank-you sexist ads, displays and posters for months. Hundreds of pieces have already been bought and removed from the internet.
2. Convert the Bad $#!T into Good $#!T: They’re turning the bad S#!T into fertiliSer (literal good $#!T) that will then be used to help female hops farmers grow over 1,000 pounds of hops.
3. Create More Good $#!T: These hops will then be donated to over 200 female brewers to make approximately 330,000 beers. So yes, some good $#!T. Miller Lite will also donate over five times the amount it spends to buy back the bad $#!T to the Pink Boots Society to support women in advancing their careers through brewing education, and to help them put more good $#!T into the world.
Anyone can help the cause. Collect sexist beer ads in old magazines and Miller Lite will do the rest: millerlite.com/badsht2goodsht
“Women are amazing and infinitely creative. I know women have been erased from building many industries from the ground up, and yet I was still surprised to learn that they were among the first beer brewers in history,” Ilana Glazer commented. “After years of treating women like objects, the beer industry has an opportunity to shed more light on just how powerful women’s contribution has been. I’m inspired Miller Lite created the space for this reflection, and I’m proud to play a part in repping this step in the right direction. We really made some good $#!T together!”
“Last year, we launched our Mary Lisle cans to celebrate women’s achievements in beer,” Hitch added.. “This year, we’re going further in our commitment to supporting the women who love beer and the women who brew beer, helping them make their own mark in history…and their own good $#!T.”
Credits:
Client: Molson Coors (Miller Lite)
Chief Marketing Officer: Michelle St. Jacques
Vice President: Sofia Colucci
Marketing Director: Elizabeth Hitch
Marketing Manager: Kelsey Ott
Creative Agency: Alma
Chief Creative Officers: Ari Weiss & Alvar Suñol
Chairman: Luis Miguel Messianu
Executive Creative Directors: Jorge Murillo & Christian Liu
Associate Creative Directors: Maia Swift, Luis Nunez, Martin Deferrari & Vanessa Castaneda
Copywriter: Raquel Chisholm
Operations: Michelle Headley
Director of Production: Yeyo Marquez
Producers: Mimi Cossio & Rudy Leschhorn
Business Lead: Candy Cabrera
Business Affairs Manager: Rosi Pratts
Account Directors: Karen Udler & Jose Hawayek
Account Manager: Stephanie Albrecht
Strategy Director: Mauricio Cadena
Strategic Planner: Felipe Diaz-Arango
Communications Manager: Victoria Lutgring
Performance Agency: Volt
Media: Connect
PR: ICF Next
