Busch, August Iv (1964–) is the former president and CEO of the Anheuser-Busch Brewing Company headquartered in St Louis, Missouri. See anheuser-busch. He is also the great-great-grandson of Adolphus Busch, founder of Anheuser-Busch, and the son of August Busch III, the former chairman, president, and CEO of the company.

Busch was born in St Louis, Missouri, in 1964, the eldest son of August Busch III. His parents divorced when he was 5 years old, and Busch lived with his mother during the remainder of his childhood. Growing up, Busch IV saw his father primarily at the family brewery and under business settings. Busch IV once said of his relationship with his father, Busch III, “I never, ever had a father–son relationship.” It was “purely business.”

Busch holds a bachelor’s degree in finance along with a master’s degree in business administration from Saint Louis University. Busch also attended the 6-month Certified Brewmaster course at Germany’s VLB Berlin. See vlb berlin.

Busch began working at Anheuser-Busch as an apprentice brewer in 1985. Since that time, he has held a variety of positions in management, brewing, operations, and marketing. In 1994, he was named vice president of brand management and 2 years later, in 1996, he became vice president of marketing. In 2000, Busch was promoted to group vice president of marketing and wholesale operations.

Busch IV spent most of his career in marketing, where he launched Bud Dry, a product that ultimately proved disappointing for Anheuser Busch. More recently, he introduced Budweiser Select, Bud Extra (a.k.a. B-to-the-E), and new packaging innovations such as aluminum bottles. He had greater success in steering the company’s advertising toward more humorous advertising campaigns, such as the “Budweiser frogs” and the popular “Whassup?” commercials.

Nicknamed “The Fourth,” Busch eventually became president and CEO of Anheuser-Busch in December of 2006, succeeding the only non-Busch family member to lead the company, Patrick Stokes. When Busch became CEO, he was fifth-generation family and the sixth member of his family to hold that position.

In 2008, Busch IV presided over the company as the global beer company InBev acquired Anheuser-Busch for approximately $52 billion, or roughly $70 a share. See inbev. Initially opposed to the takeover, Busch IV attempted to thwart the deal by trying to buy the remainder of Mexico’s beer giant Grupo Modelo and employing other strategies to raise his company’s value. Eventually, however, InBev increased the offer and a majority of shareholders voted in favor of it. The story of the merger was detailed by Julie Macintosh in her best-selling book, Dethroning the King.

After the merger, August Busch IV continued to hold a position on the board of directors of the newly formed combined company, Anheuser-Busch InBev. His new brief was to advise AB InBev on new products, review marketing programs, meet with retailers, wholesalers, advertisers, and the media; scrutinize the quality of Anheuser-Busch’s beers; and give advice about A-B’s relationship with charitable organizations and local communities.

August Busch IV remains an active member of the Democratic political party and holds black belt degrees in three martial arts.