Women on the Move: Wylde to be Inducted into Senior Living Hall of Fame

By Alyssa Schnugg
News editor
alyssa.schnugg@hottytoddy.com

Wylde, the CEO of ProMatura, will be inducted into the Senior Living Hall of Fame by ASHA on Jan. 23. Photo provided.

Oxford business owner Margaret Wylde is being recognized for her impact on the age-qualified housing industry by the American Seniors Housing Association.

Wylde, the CEO of ProMatura, will be inducted into the Senior Living Hall of Fame by ASHA on Jan. 23.

When finding out she was being inducted, Wylde said she was surprised, humbled and even a bit embarrassed.

“You just don’t think about something like that happening,” she told Hottytoddy.com recently. “Inductees have always been what I consider the ‘big-wigs.’”

ProMatura is a market-research firm based in Oxford. Wylde founded the company in 1984 and has led it to become an international leader in market research for residential communities, specializing in age-qualified housing – commonly known as senior housing or senior living.

Wylde said she was an associate professor at the University of Mississippi when a new, private nonprofit institute was being formed – the Institute for Technology Development.

“The chancellor asked about five of us at the university to come up with an idea for them to fund,” Wylde said. “My Ph. D. is in audiology. A lot of people who have hearing impairments are over the age of 70. I said, ‘The world is getting older and products are not designed for use by people with any form of limitation.’ I pitched the idea of research and product development for that population. The idea was funded.”

In 1997, ProMatura became a privately held company separate from the Institute.

In addition to her research accomplishments, Wylde has served the Oxford and Lafayette community as vice president of the board for Memory Makers and as a member of the Rotary Club and the Chamber of Commerce.

According to ASHA, the Senior Living Hall of Fame recognizes the visionaries who have distinguished themselves through uncommon foresight and ground-breaking innovation. These are industry leaders with an unwavering commitment to community lifestyles that enhance choice, independence, dignity and personalized service.