"I have never knowingly consumed the brand (Stella Artois), " confessed Paul Feldwick, but it didn't stop him scoring a knockout and title-winning blow for the "wifebeater" lager at last night's IPA Convenors' Fight Club contest.
Delivering a passionate patronage of Lowe's 2002 IPA Effectiveness Awards paper "Stella Artois: The Returning Hero", Feldwick knocked out all contenders - O2 (2004), Orange (1996), BMW (1994), Tesco (2000) and PG Tips (1990).
Six brands and their brand champions were pitted against each other in a contest of the Best IPA Effectiveness Awards papers of the last 30 years.
The Stella paper was the underdog - the sole entrant not to win a Gold Award, only achieving Bronze at the 2002 Awards. But this didn't hinder Paul "The Pugilist" Feldwick who during four rounds of frequently vicious verbal skirmishes succeeded in knocking out Laurence Green (PG Tips), Andy Nairn (BMW), Richard Storey (Orange), Chris Baker (Tesco) and David Golding (O2).
After two high scoring rounds, so confident of his case was Feldwick that his third round defence relied entirely on humming the Jean de Florette theme of the Stella TV ad soundtrack to a bemused audience.
You can read Paul Feldwick's latest Agony Uncle column on "Whether growth of digital has changed the fundamental relationship between consumer and brand" elsewhere on the Warc Blog as well as in the digital edition of the February issue of Admap. Be sure to also check out this month's Focus on The Future of Planning, which is currently the talk of plannerworld. And, if you're impressed, take advantage of a one-time special offer of £99 for an annual subscription, a saving of £180. Bargain!
