Misogyny has been a much used term in Parliament on this side of the Tasman and now New Zealand’s recently named Beer Writer of the Year has created a brouhaha by writing a blistering post excoriating Moa for the stylings of its offer documents from its recently announced Initial Public Offering.

One of Moa’s stylised depictions of ‘manhood’ in the IPO document

In a strongly worded post Phil argued that, in going for a Mad Men-style visual aesthetic for the documents, Moa instead produced something that projected the worst of the TV show’s dark undercurrents of misogyny. Phil makes ample references to ‘brandwank’ and there is much forehead slapping at the overuse of the term ‘super-premium’. In short, all the sorts of things you would expect to read in a typical Australian Brews News rant.

Curiously, those who have weighed in to criticise the post in the blog’s comments, seem not to dispute that it is indeed misogynistic, but justify this as a means to an end. One argues it’s more important for New Zealand and the beer industry that people are drinking Moa than the way that Moa represents itself and, through its branding, how it presents beer.

Here at Brews News, we love a good discussion about things such as beer’s brand image. Personally, I tend to agree with Phil’s take on it because, as I have said previously, I think that it is beer’s present brand image that is a factor hastening its decline as society goes through a generational change. (I don’t speak for all Brews News contributors in saying that, and have been taken to task by one of our contributors over the issue.) Don’t build brands by damaging beer itself.

I suspect that all readers of this site, and of Phil’s blog, want to see a stronger beer industry, particularly a stronger craft industry. But to suggest, as Phil’s knockers have, that to knock Moa’s obnoxious branding is to be anti-success is just wrong. It’s not a binary argument. You can build beer’s brand, attract new beer drinkers while exciting existing ones and still have a spectacularly successful public company. Just look at Little Creatures.

Moa might be advised to take their own advice, as set out in their IPO document:
Tip No.7, page 15

Never actively seek fame or status. If you’re a worthy man it will find you by itself, and there’s nothing sadder than someone desperate to be liked by others.