Miller Lite Drops One-Sleeved 'Vax Tee' to Benefit Restaurant Workers

By Brendan Menapace

We have beer can antennas for game day, and our Dive Bar candles are lit for Friday happy hour, but we’re even closer to real-deal Miller Time. (Or time for whatever beverage you prefer.)

As more Americans get vaccinated against COVID-19, Miller Lite is getting optimistic with its “Almost Miller Time” one-sleeve Vax Time Tee—the perfect item for people to wear when they get their jab.

Grab a limited-edition Vax Time Tee to celebrate America being one step closer to Miller Time. Get yours for $10 at https://t.co/Lx4yh9R0nK. All proceeds support the United States Bartenders Guild, and we're matching each purchase up to $50K. pic.twitter.com/iGCjneZRIg

— Miller Lite (@MillerLite) April 15, 2021

The $10 T-shirt is a good reminder that the world isn’t quite ready to fully open back up, but we’re getting there. In the meantime, proceeds from the shirt go toward the United States Bartenders Guild, and Miller Lite will match the donations up to $50,000.

“As we approach COVID-19 vaccination eligibility for the majority of Americans, heading to bars with friends is right around the corner,” Miller vice president of marketing Sofia Colucci said in a statement to Fox News. “We know this is an important and historic moment for so many, and with the release of the Vax Time Tee, we’re one step closer to enjoying Miller Time in person.”

The unisex shirt comes in white or blue and in left- and right-armed versions, and is available for a limited time only.

Miller Lite has been, quite frankly, crushing it with promotions during the pandemic. The bar and restaurant industry was one of the hardest hit industries during the pandemic, and Miller Lite tapped into how both establishments and patrons were feeling.

Bars and restaurants were losing money, so doing things like donating proceeds helps them directly. But average people were suddenly left without one of the cornerstones of social life. They missed chopping it up with their friends over a beer, or maybe watching a game together. Things like that beer can antenna and bar-scented candles directly appealed to consumer emotions because they replicated (in a tongue-in-cheek, branded way) something they missed over the last year.

This tee is, once again, beneficial to the recovering restaurant industry. It’s also beneficial to people because they can genuinely wear this shirt to a vaccination appointment without the need to roll up any sleeves. And they’ll definitely get a few laughs from the person administering the vaccine. It’s clever, it’s effective and it makes an actual difference.

Is it a T-shirt? A tank top? Both? (Tank-shirt?) It doesn't matter. It works.