Malcolm Peters MacDougall dies, aged 76

Malcolm Peters MacDougall, director and former chairman of Peters Booksellers in Birmingham, has died following complications from recurring cancers.

Peters died on Saturday 16th January 2021 at the age of 76.

His family have been involved in library supply and general bookselling since 1935 with the opening of their first shop in Moor Street, Birmingham, by Peters' grandfather.

He himself ran the business from the early 1960s until the mid-1990s and oversaw its evolution to a leading specialist school and library supplier. An early adopter of electronic trading, he was one of the first members and a director of Book Industry Communication and was a strong advocate of using technology to drive efficiencies in the book trade and the standardisation of electronic communication between publishers and booksellers.

In 1983, under Peters' instigation, Peters Library Service was launched to re-establish the company as a specialist children's library bookseller from their main showroom and offices in central Birmingham. This specialism led to a decade-long sponsorship of the CILIP Carnegie and Kate Greenaway Medals, to raise the profile of the prestigious awards with the aim of geting more people, especially children, reading.

Away from the business, Peters had a wide range of interests including a passion for music, travel and his family. He retired as chairman of Peters in 2008 when he was succeeded by his son, Rhydian, but retained an active interest as a director of the business.