Maurice Saatchi, Baron Saatchi
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Maurice Nathan Saatchi, Baron Saatchi (; born 21 June 1946) is a British
businessman A businessperson, also referred to as a businessman or businesswoman, is an individual who has founded, owns, or holds shares in (including as an angel investor) a private-sector company. A businessperson undertakes activities (commercial ...
, and with his brother,
Charles Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English language, English and French language, French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic, Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''* ...
, co-founder of the
advertising Advertising is the practice and techniques employed to bring attention to a Product (business), product or Service (economics), service. Advertising aims to present a product or service in terms of utility, advantages, and qualities of int ...
agencies
Saatchi & Saatchi Saatchi and Saatchi is a British multinational communications and advertising agency network with 114 offices in 76 countries and over 6,500 staff. It was founded in 1970 and is currently headquartered in London. The parent company of the agency ...
and M&C Saatchi.


Early life

Maurice Saatchi is the third of four sons born to Nathan Saatchi and Daisy Ezer, a wealthy Jewish family in
Baghdad Baghdad ( or ; , ) is the capital and List of largest cities of Iraq, largest city of Iraq, located along the Tigris in the central part of the country. With a population exceeding 7 million, it ranks among the List of largest cities in the A ...
,
Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...
. Maurice's brothers are David (born 1937), Charles Nathan (born 1943) and Philip (born 1953). Nathan was a successful textile merchant, and in 1947 he pre-empted a flight that tens of thousands of Iraqi Jews would soon make to avoid persecution and relocated his family to
Finchley Finchley () is a large district of north London, England, in the London Borough of Barnet. north of Charing Cross, nearby districts include: Golders Green, Muswell Hill, Friern Barnet, Whetstone, London, Whetstone, Mill Hill and Hendon. It is ...
in
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
. Nathan purchased two textile mills in north London and after a time re-built a thriving business. Eventually the family would settle into a house with eight bedrooms on Hampstead Lane in
Highgate Highgate is a suburban area of N postcode area, north London in the London Borough of Camden, London Boroughs of Camden, London Borough of Islington, Islington and London Borough of Haringey, Haringey. The area is at the north-eastern corner ...
. Saatchi attended Tollington Grammar School and graduated from the
London School of Economics The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), established in 1895, is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the University of London. The school specialises in the social sciences. Founded ...
with a first class honours degree in Sociology in 1967. His first job was at Haymarket Publications where Maurice would form valuable relationships with
Michael Heseltine Michael Ray Dibdin Heseltine, Baron Heseltine, (; born 21 March 1933) is a British politician. Having begun his career as a property developer, he became one of the founders of the publishing house Haymarket Media Group in 1957. Heseltine se ...
, the group managing director and with staff at the Haymarket's leading trade weekly for the ad industry ''Campaign''. He spent three years at Haymarket as creative director before leaving to join his brother Charles' fledgling ad agency.


Career


Saatchi and Saatchi

In 1970, Saatchi, with his brother, formed the advertising and communications agency
Saatchi & Saatchi Saatchi and Saatchi is a British multinational communications and advertising agency network with 114 offices in 76 countries and over 6,500 staff. It was founded in 1970 and is currently headquartered in London. The parent company of the agency ...
. They are credited with a number of successful advertising campaigns, most notably the " Labour isn't working" posters on behalf of the Conservative Party for the 1979 British general election and advertisements for the
cigarette A cigarette is a narrow cylinder containing a combustible material, typically tobacco, that is rolled into Rolling paper, thin paper for smoking. The cigarette is ignited at one end, causing it to smolder; the resulting smoke is orally inhale ...
brand Silk Cut. Maurice Saatchi served as chairman of the firm which by 1986 – following its acquisition of advertising firm Ted Bates – had grown to be the largest ad agency in the world, with over 600 offices.


M&C Saatchi

At the turn of 1995, in the fallout from a shareholder revolt, Saatchi and his brother left the agency, and together founded the rival M&C Saatchi agency, taking with them many of their management and creative staff, as well as a number of clients – including
British Airways British Airways plc (BA) is the flag carrier of the United Kingdom. It is headquartered in London, England, near its main Airline hub, hub at Heathrow Airport. The airline is the second largest UK-based carrier, based on fleet size and pass ...
. The new company has also been described as a success. In mid 2019 M&C Saatchi PLC - a public company listed on the AIM exchange - reported to the City some accounting irregularities which would cause the company to take a charge lowering its 2018 and 2019 results.Guardian Zoe Wood 10Dec19
/ref> By the time the matter was finalised in December 2019 following a
PricewaterhouseCoopers PricewaterhouseCoopers, also known as PwC, is a multinational professional services network based in London, United Kingdom. It is the second-largest professional services network in the world and is one of the Big Four accounting firms, alon ...
review, the accounting issues were quantified at £11.6M. Over the course of 2019 the company's share price took a significant tumble from near £4 down to 79p. Then in a shock announcement to the City on 10 December Saatchi resigned as an executive director along with all three of the independent non-executive directors – Sir Michael Peat, Baron Dobbs and Lorna Tilbian. It was reported that the departing directors disagreed over whether David Kershaw, one of Saatchi's co-founders of the company should stay as CEO following the accounting scandal.FT Alex Barker 11Dec19
/ref>


Political career

Maurice Saatchi was created a
life peer In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, in contrast to hereditary peers. Life peers are appointed by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister. With the exception of the D ...
as Baron Saatchi (or, ''Lord Saatchi''), of Staplefield in the County of West Sussex on 4 October 1996. He sits in the
House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. One of the oldest ext ...
as a
Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...
. Under the leadership of
Iain Duncan Smith Sir George Iain Duncan Smith (born 9 April 1954), often referred to by his initials IDS, is a British politician who was Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party and Leader of the Opposition (United Kingdom), Le ...
, Saatchi served as shadow Treasury spokesman in the Lords, forming a close relationship with
Michael Howard Michael Howard, Baron Howard of Lympne (born Michael Hecht; 7 July 1941) is a British politician who was Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party and Leader of the Opposition (United Kingdom), Leader of the Opposi ...
, who was
Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer The shadow chancellor of the exchequer in the British Parliamentary system is the member of the Official Opposition Shadow Cabinet (United Kingdom), Shadow Cabinet who is responsible for shadowing the Chancellor of the Exchequer, chancellor of ...
. Saatchi argued for the simplification of the tax system and that the poorest eight million people in the United Kingdom should not pay
income tax An income tax is a tax imposed on individuals or entities (taxpayers) in respect of the income or profits earned by them (commonly called taxable income). Income tax generally is computed as the product of a tax rate times the taxable income. Tax ...
. In June 2014, he suggested that small businesses should pay no corporate tax and that investors in said small businesses should pay no capital gains tax in order to "challenge cartel capitalism." After Howard became leader of the Conservatives in November 2003, Saatchi was appointed joint chairman of the party with Liam Fox. He had responsibility for running the party campaign for the 2005 general election, after which he stepped down. He published his reflections on the election campaign in a
Centre for Policy Studies The Centre for Policy Studies (CPS) is a centre-right think tanks, think tank and advocacy group in the United Kingdom. Its goal is to promote coherent and practical policies based on its founding principles of: free markets, "small state," lo ...
pamphlet ''If this is Conservatism, I am a Conservative'' in a chapter entitled ''How I Lost the Election''. Among his failings listed in the document, Saatchi highlighted the following: :* ''I DID NOT convince the Party that if you don't stand for something, you'll fall for anything.'' :* ''I DID NOT dispel the illusion of research, which said that, as immigration was the number one issue in deciding how people vote, it should be the number one topic.'' :* ''I DID NOT prevent economics, the Conservatives' former ace of trumps, becoming a 'second order issue. :* ''I DID NOT avoid the underestimation of public intelligence, as in the policy description 'Lower Taxes' when in fact taxes would be higher.'' He recommended that future Conservative leaders establish a "moral purpose" as an ideology and future direction for the Party. Following the death of his wife Josephine Hart to
ovarian cancer Ovarian cancer is a cancerous tumor of an ovary. It may originate from the ovary itself or more commonly from communicating nearby structures such as fallopian tubes or the inner lining of the abdomen. The ovary is made up of three different ...
, Maurice Saatchi has campaigned for a change to the UK law which, he believes, holds doctors back from using innovative treatments because they fear litigation. His Medical Innovation Bill was formally introduced in 2013 and was co-adopted by the government in its passage through parliament. The bill has enjoyed some popular support and favourable press coverage, but has drawn a critical response from some medical and legal bodies, patient groups and charities.


Other roles

He was chairman of the Finsbury Food Group plc, and is a governor of the
London School of Economics The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), established in 1895, is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the University of London. The school specialises in the social sciences. Founded ...
. Saatchi is a trustee of the
Museum of Garden History The Garden Museum (formerly known as the Museum of Garden History) in London is United Kingdom, Britain's only museum of the art, history and design of gardens. The museum re-opened in 2017 after an 18-month redevelopment project. The buildin ...
, and also a director of the
Centre for Policy Studies The Centre for Policy Studies (CPS) is a centre-right think tanks, think tank and advocacy group in the United Kingdom. Its goal is to promote coherent and practical policies based on its founding principles of: free markets, "small state," lo ...
. He was also a trustee of the
Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (abbreviated V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.8 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and named after Queen ...
from 1988 to 1996.


Accolades and philanthropy

He is a previous recipient of St. George's Society of New York's Medal of Honour, an award established in 1996 which recognizes those who have rendered exemplary service to British interests and/or the international community at large. He and his brother founded the Saatchi Shul, an independent
Orthodox Jewish Orthodox Judaism is a collective term for the traditionalist branches of contemporary Judaism. Theologically, it is chiefly defined by regarding the Torah, both Written and Oral, as literally revealed by God on Mount Sinai and faithfully tra ...
synagogue in
Maida Vale Maida Vale ( ) is an affluent residential district in North West London, England, north of Paddington, southwest of St John's Wood and south of Kilburn, on Edgware Road. It is part of the City of Westminster and is northwest of Charing C ...
, London, England, in 1998.


Personal life

Saatchi's first wife was Gillian Osband, a children's book editor and writer whom he had known since childhood and whom he married in 1972. They divorced in 1984 and that same year he married the novelist Josephine Hart (1942–2011), whom he first met when they worked together at Haymarket Publications in 1967. She died on 2 June 2011. His country property is a mock Tudor castle called Old Hall in Staplefield,
West Sussex West Sussex is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Surrey to the north, East Sussex to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Hampshire to the west. The largest settlement is Cr ...
, built in 1842. There are sixty acres of parkland and ten acres of flowers, trees and lakes. Maurice Saatchi has a fondness for gardening, laid out the garden on the estate and built a conservatory to house semi-tropical plants. The property was the subject of a display article in ''Architectural Digest'' in January 1995. Maurice Saatchi and his brother Charles were listed at number 366 in the '' Sunday Times Rich List 2008'', with an estimated wealth of £220m in advertising and art. In the '' Sunday Times Rich List 2009'' they were listed at number 438. In December 2024, Saatchi told
The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...
he was in a new relationship with Lynn Forester de Rothschild.


Arms


Bibliography

* Maurice Saatch
''Do Not Resuscitate: The Life and Afterlife of Maurice Saatchi''
* Maurice Saatch
''If this is Conservatism, I am a Conservative''
from the
Centre for Policy Studies The Centre for Policy Studies (CPS) is a centre-right think tanks, think tank and advocacy group in the United Kingdom. Its goal is to promote coherent and practical policies based on its founding principles of: free markets, "small state," lo ...


References

;General *


External links


Maurice Saatchi profile
*
Business profile
at ''
Bloomberg Businessweek ''Bloomberg Businessweek'', previously known as ''BusinessWeek'' (and before that ''Business Week'' and ''The Business Week''), is an American monthly business magazine published 12 times a year. The magazine debuted in New York City in Septembe ...
''
M&C Saatchi WebsiteM&C Saatchi Mobile Marketing Website
*
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
Media Top 10
2001 number 44
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saatchi, Maurice Saatchi, Baron 1946 births Alumni of the London School of Economics British advertising executives British Sephardi Jews British people of Iraqi-Jewish descent Chairmen of the Conservative Party (UK) Conservative Party (UK) life peers Iraqi emigrants to the United Kingdom Iraqi Jews Living people Businesspeople from Baghdad Maurice Jewish British politicians Life peers created by Elizabeth II