Mepps has been a dominant player in the fishing tackle industry for nearly 70 years. Ever since Todd Sheldon sold his Antigo, Wisconsin sporting goods store in 1956 to concentrate on importing and assembling Mepps spinners, Mepps has become the inline spinner leader in the industry. So much so, in fact, that “Mepps” has become the standard term for just about any and every spinner on the market, whether they are actual Mepps spinners or not. In the mid-1980s Sheldon’s Inc., Todd’s company, came up with a clever and somewhat combative marketing promotion that picked a friendly fight with another leading lure company, Rapala. In Mepps – Nobody’s Perfect, we’ll take a look at that strategy.
The genesis for this piece is a sturdy cardboard countertop display that I have (the introductory image above). I remember seeing this ad in some outdoor magazines back in the day, and I thought it was a great bit of marketing back then. It’s really a clever image, one that takes full advantage of the annual fishing contests held in Sports Afield and Field & Stream magazines. In the ad Mepps declared that from 1973 to 1985 their lures caught more first place winning fish than any other lure on the market…except for one year, 1978. In 1978, according to Mepps, Rapala took the top spot for most first place fish caught on their lures.
The image speaks to the reliability and confidence anglers had and have in Mepps spinners. Twelve identical gold and red Mepps spinners are laid out, with a lone, small black and silver Rapala minnow putting only a momentary hitch in the spinners’ yearly dominance. Visually it’s brilliant. Mepps. Mepps, Mepps, Mepps, Mepps, Rapala, Mepps, Mepps, Mepps, Mepps, Mepps Mepps, Mepps. On graphics alone, it pretty much compels you to stock your tackle box with Mepps spinners.
I spoke with Mike Sheldon, President of Mepps. He said, “For years, Sports Afield magazine had a nation-wide fishing contest. During the year people could enter their catches and at a certain point in the year Sports Afield would publish the results in one of their issues. There were a half-dozen or so regions of the country. So, for example, the 3 largest largemouth bass from each region were listed. Mepps spinners accounted for the most winners every year…except for one. Rapala had, I believe, one more winner than Mepps [in 1978].”
Now the ad itself mentions Sports Afield and Field & Stream magazines, and Mepps makes their claim for both magazines’ fishing contests. But as I understand it, Field & Stream stopped running their contest in 1977. I don’t know, but the text implies that both contests were taken into account. I assume that after 1977 Sports Afield was the only contest where the numbers were tallied.
Mike continued, “We created this ad that ran in various outdoor magazines. We also had it made into a counter top display that was passed out to dealers. I can’t say if it impacted sales, but we felt it reinforced our image and fish catching history. I don’t remember hearing any feedback from Rapala, although I’d guess they were not happy with it.” If I was Rapala I would have been fine with it. Not only did it herald Mepps, but it also shone a spotlight on Rapala. And as they say, any advertising is good advertising.
Below each year is listed the top four successful baits for that year. Rapala is in the top four every year, and other than 1978 when they took top honors, is in second place in all but two years. That’s a mighty impressive record. You could fill your tackle box with Mepps spinners and Rapala minnows and you’d pretty much have your fishing bases covered.
Mike had an interesting side note, which also emphasizes how this ad may have helped the company’s sales reps deal with buyers. “Dealing with our largest buyers, like Kmart, at the time. They always liked to tell you how unimportant you were to them. They wanted to convince you more discount was in order or some other compensation. My point is that if you were selling fishing lures, Mepps is a critical part of the selection or you weren’t really selling fishing lures.”
The top four lures of each year are also interesting, and highlights trends in popular lures at the time. Eppinger Dardevle made the list from 1973 to 1978, hitting the number 2 spot in 1974 (Rapala was third that year). Rebel and Mister Twister were also perennial placers in many years. I wonder if each year when the results of the previous year’s contest were published, if that had an impact on the following year, with more anglers choosing the top lures to cast, which in turn resulted in more record fish being caught on those lures. Surely that must be true.
Mike concludes, “Sports Afield eventually discontinued the contest and I always wondered if it was because Mepps was so dominant? Rapala and other companies spent advertising money with them too. I have one of the display cards in my office. It shows Mepps winning the Sports Afield contest every year from 1973 -1985, except 1978. That year, Rapala beat Mepps with 24 winning catches to Mepps 23. Most years Mepps won overwhelmingly. The last year of the contest Mepps had 52 winners compared to Rapala’s 20. I believe the ad and display card were used the following year, 1986.”
The sales pitch is simple, straightforward, convincing, and even sprinkled with a little humility. It basically says: Every single year, original Mepps spinners have caught more contest winning fish than any other lure. Except for one year when another lure caught one more than Mepps. “So, what happened in ‘78? Well, nobody’s perfect. But we sure come close.” That last line is funny and effective.
As I was finishing the article I ran across an image on eBay that I thought would be a fantastic addition to this story. So I contacted Mike Sheldon again and asked him if he happened to have a copy of the following promo piece. Mike contacted Mepps/Mister Twister Communications Director, Nik Kolbeck, and Nik sent me an email with a scan of the image (below) and a message, “We lucked out and I had an original copy in my office still!”
This ad was run almost 20 years after the “Nobody’s Perfect” ad. It talks about the 1967 Field & Stream and Sports Afield fishing contests and how Mepps yet again was the overwhelming choice of contest winning anglers. “This total of 40 winners in the two national contests has not been approached by any other lure…ever!”
So, Mepps took great advantage of the success their lures found in the two magazines’ annual contests, as I’m sure other companies did as well. It’s also interesting to note the small print at the bottom of this ad, where it says “Nine of the above winners used Mepps Super Meca reels.” Last year I wrote a story about the 1971-72 Mepps Fishing Catalog that featured the Super Meca spinning reel. I wrote, “But if you happened to be a Field & Stream contest winner, a Mepps records winner or a state record winner, Mepps would award you a Super Meca reel, a lure kit of your choice and a patch for your fishing jacket.” What a great promotion! Unfortunately, although the Meca was a great reel at the time, it was eventually discontinued.
