Here Comes Mr. Cass

In an extraordinary career spanning more than seven decades, Wilfred Cass has moved with equal ease from the factory floor to the boardroom, from Army fatigues to Savile Row suits, and from collecting Dinky toys to Henry Moores. 


Fleeing Nazi Germany with his Jewish family in 1936, Wilfred arrived in England at the age of 11, speaking no English. Within five years, he had started his first company: a bicycle repair business that served the masters and pupils of his progressive boarding school in Surrey. After army service in WW2, the twists and turns of a colourful career led him to a string of successes in electronic engineering, manufacturing and retail – following in the footsteps of his illustrious ancestors, the Cassirer family. Famed for their influence on the art and finance worlds alike, the Cassirers who came before him set the pattern for Wilfred’s lifetime of innovation and patronage.


Just when most other men would think about retiring to spend more time with their golf clubs and grandchildren, Wilfred and his wife Jeannette embarked on their greatest adventure yet: the establishment of a foundation to promote monumental outdoor sculpture. Today, 20 years later, the Cass Sculpture Foundation is the acknowledged leader in its field, having pioneered a brand new model for commissioning new, large-scale works from artists in Britain and around the world.


This is a story about trusting your forefathers while still embracing the new. It’s about following your instincts, even when that means swimming against the tide, and starting from first principles in order to make something extraordinary out of nothing. 


This is a dual multi-touch eBook displaying the fascinating story when the iPad is held in portrait view and an illuminating picture book when held in landscape. The reader can rotate the device to switch between them as the story progresses.