Malcolm Ashworth facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Malcolm Ashworth
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| Born | 14 November 1925 Wandsworth, London, England |
| Died | 7 April 1978 (aged 52) Wandsworth, London, England |
| Allegiance |  United Kingdom |
| Service/ |
 British Army |
| Years of service | 1943 – 1952 |
| Rank | Captain |
| Unit | Devonshire Regiment Gloucestershire Regiment |
| Battles/wars | World War II Malayan Emergency |
| Awards | Mentioned in Despatches |
| Relations | Henry Ashworth Sir John Wyndham Wadham Wyndham Wadham Wyndham Wadham Wyndham Charles à Court Repington King Edward I |
| Other work | Marketing pioneer |
Malcolm Stanley Wyndham Ashworth (1925 – 1978) was a decorated British army officer. He was also a very important person in the world of marketing. Many people see him as the main person who helped make marketing a respected job in the UK. He is also known for saving a big advertising company called Crawford's Advertising Agency from going out of business in the late 1960s.
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Early Life and Education
Malcolm Ashworth was born in London, England. His mother was Kathleen Wyndham Little, and his father was Arthur Broad Ashworth. Malcolm went to St Boniface's Catholic College in Devon. He was a very good student and athlete there. He was even captain of both the school's football and rugby teams!
After school, he studied at the Indian Military Academy in India. He also started studying at the University of Edinburgh in 1943. However, he decided to leave university to join the army instead.
Military Service
Malcolm Ashworth joined the British Army on June 15, 1943, when he was 17 years old. Before that, he had been part of the local Home Guard. He was one of only 710 British officers who received a special "King's Commission" from the Indian Military Academy.
He served as a lieutenant and then a captain. He was part of the Devonshire Regiment and the Gloucestershire Regiment. He served during and after World War II in places like India, Burma, and Malaya. He was even honored for his brave actions, being "Mentioned in Despatches".
In 1948, while serving in Malaya, Malcolm became the Battalion Intelligence Officer. This meant he was in charge of gathering information and understanding what was happening in the Kluang area. He specifically watched the Malayan Communist Party guerrillas during the Malayan Emergency. He left active service in 1952.
Career in Marketing
After leaving the army, Malcolm Ashworth started a career in marketing in 1953. He quickly became very successful. By 1957, he was the Director of Marketing for Quaker Oats. In 1961, he became Marketing Director for Revlon, a famous beauty company. He returned to Quaker Oats in 1964.
One of his most famous ideas at Quaker Oats was in 1968. He decided to hire the famous chef Sir Clement Freud to advertise Quaker's dog food, Minced Morsels. The TV ads were a huge success! Quaker's dog food became the best-selling brand almost overnight, and Sir Clement Freud became a household name.
Malcolm Ashworth is seen as a very important person in making marketing a respected job. He helped lead what he called "the marketing revolution" in the 1960s. He believed that marketing needed smart, imaginative, and determined people to succeed.
Saving Advertising Agencies
In 1968, Malcolm Ashworth became the chairman and chief executive of Crawford's Advertising Agency. This agency was very creative but was having money problems. He helped the company merge with another agency, Dorland. This move is believed to have saved Crawford's from going out of business. The agency continued to operate under its original name for many years.
After helping Crawford's, Malcolm was asked to help another advertising agency, Overmark Smith Warden, in 1970. He became the Deputy Managing Director and helped the company start making a profit. By 1973, he became the chairman. However, the company's old debts were too big, and he had to put the company into receivership in 1976.
Even with these challenges, Malcolm Ashworth continued to share his passion for marketing. He was a speaker on marketing at the University of Liverpool throughout the 1970s. He also wrote many articles about marketing and advertising.
Family and Legacy
Malcolm Ashworth came from a very old English family called the Ashworths of Ashworth. Their family history goes back to 1170!
In 1957, Malcolm married Ingeborg Laufs. They had one son, Alexander Ashworth, who also went into marketing. Malcolm added the name Wyndham to his name in 1977 after his father passed away. This was part of a family tradition.
Malcolm Ashworth passed away unexpectedly in 1978, at the age of 52. His death was caused by a cerebral haemorrhage and other health issues related to his war wounds. He is remembered as a brave soldier and a pioneer in the world of marketing.
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