The United Kingdom has been home to a great number of talented and pioneering women who have made significant achievements in various industries. Let’s explore the journeys of a few of them who have left an incredible mark in their respective fields.
Jo Malone
Joanne Lesley Malone or Jo Malone is a British entrepreneur who founded two popular perfume brands Jo Malone and Jo Loves. She launched Jo Malone in 1990 and sold it to Estée Lauder Companies after nine years in 1999 after she was diagnosed with cancer and lost her sense of smell as a result of chemotherapy treatments.
In 2011, followed by a complete recovery, she founded Jo Love, another global perfume brand targeting Gen Z. Jo Love gained immense popularity within a short period, owing to the success of the former brand along with the founder’s innovative ideas like gender-neutral launches, appealing to the younger generation.
Tamara Mellon
She is the Co-founder and the former Chief Creative Officer of the luxury footwear brand Jimmy Choo. In the past, she worked as an accessories editor and assistant at British Vogue.
She founded the company with Jimmy Choo in 1967 and worked for the brand for fifteen years. She left the company after Labelux acquired Jimmy Choo in 2011.
Two years later, she founded her namesake brand Tamara Mellon which took a modern and unique approach to footwear and clothing. She was appointed as the Officer of the Order of the British Empire in 2010, for her contributions to the industry.
Anne Boden
Anne Elizabeth Boden is known as the first woman to found a British Bank. She is the founder of Sterling Bank, who stepped down as CEO in 2023 in order to avoid a potential conflict of interest due to her dual role in the company.
The origin of the bank was in June 2014, when Boden launched an online banking business called Possible Financial Services which later developed and renamed as Sterling Bank.
In 2018, when Boden received an MBE from the British Monarch, Serling Bank won the Best British Bank Award and held the title for the next four years, until 2022.
Alexandra Margolis
Alexandra Margolis is the Co-founder and Creative Director of Carwow, an online platform for the buying and selling of cars. Although born in Stockholm, she was brought up in London and graduated from the University of Nottingham.
She founded the company in 2015, as a free and easy-to-use marketplace for cars, where the customers can lease, purchase, and sell cars with a few clicks.
She was featured in the Forbes 30 under 30 list and the company was ranked in the Top 100 – Britain’s Fastest Growing Businesses, BusinessCloud 100 eCommerce of 2017.
Giovanna Lombardi
Founding expert at Quell Therapeutics and a Professor of Human Transplant Immunology at King’s College London, Giovanna Lombardi is a prominent figure in the field of healthcare focusing on organ transplant rejection and tolerance.
Quell Therapeutics is a biotechnology company based in London researching engineered cell therapy to address autoimmune diseases and prevent transplant rejection. She is one of the six founding members of Quell which was launched in 2019, and remains with the company to date.
Addy Loudiadis
Co-founder and former CEO of Rothesay Life, UK’s largest pension and security provider, Addy Loudiadis used to be a banker at Goldman Sachs, a global investment banking and management company.
She learned the basics of insurance from her career as a banker, and she founded Rothsay Life with Goldman Sachs in 2007 and it has been experiencing sustainable growth ever since. She set up and ran the company for fifteen years until she stepped down as Chief Executive in 2022.
Ella Woodward
Eleanor Laura Davan Mills aka Ella Woodward is the founder of the food blog and brand ‘Deliciously Ella’, initiated in 2012, advocating a plant-based diet and clean eating. She is an author turned businesswoman who got her first book under the same name published in 2015.
The second book titled Deliciously Ella Every Day was released in 2016, and the third of the series Deliciously Ella With Friends, in 2017. The brand manufactures food products sold in stores and expanded its business to the US in 2019.
Louise Hill
Louise Hill is a British entrepreneur who co-founded the prepaid debit card and financial education app GoHenry, with Dean Brauer. The London-based company was founded in 2012 and was named after its first customer Henry who was an 11-year-old boy at the time.
She started the fintech company with the intention of building financial literacy among children. Serving as the Chief Operating Officer of the company, Hill manages the supply chain, premises, and customer service skillfully and leading the company to more success.
Kit Kemp
Kemp began her career as an auctioneer where she got to opportunity to explore how furniture contributes to interior design. This is one of the things that inspired her to be a renowned interior designer and the Founder of award-winning Firmdale hotels.
Her hotels are known for their unique and original interiors, with bold patterns and vibrant colors. Kit Kemp is also known for her success in the textile industry, literature, and art. She is currently the Creative Director and C-owner of the eight hotels located in London and New York.
Elaine Warburton
Elaine Warburton, who was honored with the Order of British Empire in 2021, is one of the founders and the Non-Executive Director of the medtech company QuantumMDx. Elaine has over 30 years of experience in healthcare and biotechnology she set up the company in 2008, to manufacture innovative diagnostic medical devices that could revolutionize the field.
She is also the founder of ReadyGo Diagnostics, a company that develops diagnostics tests for self-testing.
Also, Read: The 10 Most Profitable Businesses in the UK
Conclusion
The success achieved by each of them is a testament to their unwavering determination and resilience. Their stories will inspire and empower future generations, especially young women, to dream big and make a difference in the business world and beyond.
