Patrick Cavendish (1939-2000) made his mark in the publishing industry when the British Printing Corporation (BPC) put him in charge of partwork marketing. In that position, he was responsible for the spectacular success of a History of the Second World War.
At BPC, Cavendish met Norman Marshall (1925-1980) and together they ran partworks for the British publisher. In 1967, they left BPC to set up Marshall Cavendish; the following year the firm published its first partwork, “Mind Alive” – an encyclopedia for young people.
Cavendish, as marketing director, demonstrated that he was ahead of his time in the skillful use of television and market research. “Mind Alive” was advertised in every television commercial break in a single evening. Although the practice was promptly banned by the Independent Broadcasting Association, Cavendish had met his objective – the first of issue of “Mind Alive” sold 700,000 copies.
Other successful series followed, including The Game (about sports), the Encyclopedia of Gardening, the Book of Life and Golden Hands, a guide to knitting, and needlecraft.
The Times Publishing Group acquired Marshall Cavendish in 1980. They have published over 150 complete collections encompassing the fields of Education, General & Reference, Business, Home and Library Reference, among others.
Eight Marshall Cavendish titles are included in Gale Virtual Reference Library, among them “Animal and Plant Anatomy,” “Diseases and Disorders” and “Exploring American History.” New titles will be added later this year.
View a list of Marshall Cavendish titles on the Gale Virtual Reference Library.
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