Some stories develop over night so to speak, not so ours! It tells you all about the company Karl Moese from the moment it was established, it tells you about four generations of Moese family and their strengths and weaknesses. If I come to think about it, it is quite astonishing that the company still exists. You will of course wonder what I’m talking about, well let me tell you:
My great-grandfather Karl Moese, was a man with a good sense for quality and beauty and was himself a smart and stylish man, if perhaps a little stiff and not a terribly good business man.
In 1908 on 15th February he established his company with the idea to manufacture the world’s finest ties. If it had not been for my great-grandmother Gertrud this would have been in all probability a short lived dream. She was a superb business woman who, with a lot of effort, got the young company through two world wars and one world financial crisis.
As well as the company she also had a family with three children and the eldest son Erwin shared their interest and enthusiasm for ties. It was him, who travelled to England in the late forties and after a visit to the races at Ascot decided that this would be an ideal name for his company. So, ASCOT became our brand name and still is to this day.
My grandfather Erwin was a lively and generous man who made beautiful collections and was a brilliant salesman. Being thrifty or even careful with money never occurred to him and most of his customers were friends, so showing his collection often turned into a long night. He and his wife Hilde had two children and the boy Wolfgang played an important role in the later history of the company. He was a very good golfer even when he was young. Golf was one thing, the other was being sent to Lyon and Como to learn the languages and the tricks of the trade. So after a few years of studying in several foreign countries my father came back to Krefeld, finished his studies and joined the company. He had a good hand for money and for the first time the financial base of the tie company was sound.
