PROFESSOR Michael John Baker, who died last month after a short illness aged 85, was a world leader in the academic field of marketing who used his knowledge to found a social business promoting tourism in the Helensburgh area, where he lived for 50 years.
The author or editor of more than 50 books, many of them standard texts, and over 150 academic articles and papers, Professor Baker won the Institute of Marketing's Gold Medal and was named Author of the Year in 1978.
Born in Debden in Essex but of Yorkshire blood, he was the middle of three children born to John and Constance Baker.
John had served in the Royal Flying Corps in World War One and after managing railways in El Salvador and Palestine between the wars he re-joined the RAF as a Flight Lieutenant after the outbreak of hostilities in 1939, meaning the family frequently moved home before settling in the north east of England.
Michael went to Kings College, Durham University, where he represented the university in swimming and rowing before graduating with a BA Hons in geography, philosophy and psychology - he also met his future wife Sheila at a student dance.
Sheila qualified as a state registered nurse and midwife and they married in Carlisle in 1959.
Michael initially worked for Richard Thomas and Baldwins in Mayfair selling flat-rolled steel, but studied part-time and was awarded a BSc in Economics from the University of London.
Following six years of industry experience, he obtained his first teaching job - assistant lecturer in business studies at Medway College of Technology, before moving to Yorkshire to work as a lecturer in marketing at Hull College of Commerce and Technology.
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Then in 1968 he was awarded a scholarship to Harvard Business School as a Foundation for Management Education Fellow, earning a Doctorate in Business Administration, International Teachers Program Certificate and Diploma in Marketing.
A one-year scholarship turned into a three-year stay in the USA, and it was in Boston in 1971 that Michael wrote his first book, Marketing: An Introductory Text.
Whilst at Harvard, Michael and Sheila bought a VW Camper van and every vacation from 1968–1971 they set off with son and daughter John and Fiona on great adventures criss-crossing the United States and Canada.
In 1971 Michael was appointed the Founding Professor of Marketing at the University of Strathclyde, so the family sailed home on the QE2 and moved to Helensburgh, where Anne was born in 1972.
He became Dean of the School of Business Administration in 1978 before being appointed Deputy Principal of the University six years later and special adviser to the Principal in 1991. In 1983 Michael founded Westburn Publishers Ltd and launched the Journal of Marketing Management, an internationally-renowned journal now in its 37th volume.
His academic achievements were recognised in awards including fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, as well as honorary doctorates, fellowships, and 29 visiting professorships around the world, including in Hong Kong, Australia and New Zealand.
He and Sheila travelled all over the world, as Michael recounted in his 2017 memoir The Leisure of the Theory Class: A Memoir of a Peripatetic Professor.
Although he retired from Strathclyde in 2000 he remained an emeritus professor and still supervised PhD students, as well as writing books and papers, and editing academic journals.
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One of his last projects, together with his daughters, was establishing Destination Helensburgh as a legacy to the town and district he called home for 50 years.
This social business was created to promote the local area for the social and economic benefit of all residents, with a gift shop and gallery supporting a visitor information centre and destination marketing activities.
A keen gardener, he listed his hobbies in Who’s Who as building bridges and mending fences, a never-ending task in his garden, which he and Sheila opened for charity.
He also enjoyed driving his MGB sports car and walking the West Highland Way with Sheila.
Having learned to sail at Helensburgh Sailing Club, he had several boats and took great pleasure in restoring a 1930s gentleman’s cruiser, the Mary Rose of Morar, with his friend and co-owner Aeneas Rosie, cruising the West Coast and Hebrides in the summer - and even appearing in the film The Rocket Post.
He was a remarkably practical man and spent many happy hours on wet afternoons in his garage pursuing various DIY projects.
Michael leaves Sheila, his wife of 62 years, son John, daughters Fiona and Anne, and grand-daughter Katie.
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