ILKLEY-based, The Kindr Company, has been named one of the most exciting new businesses in the region after being shortlisted as part of a brand new awards programme.

The StartUp Awards National Series has been launched to recognise the booming startup scene across the UK which has accelerated since the pandemic began. In 2020, when most of the world was shutting down, more than 400,000 startups were set up in Britain, with similar increases seen in other European countries.

The Kindr Company was established in response to the pandemic in August 2020 by mother of two, Kate Thompson, who has sensitive skin. She wanted to create a better solution to hand sanitiser and working with UK chemical engineers, the solution was developed and tested to be compliant to British Standard EN 1500 – the gold standard of hand sanitisers. Along with being effective against COVID-19 independent testing showed it was rehydrating and gentle on all skin types, including eczema prone and sensitive skin.

Kate Thompson, founder of The Kindr Company said: “I am delighted that The Kindr Company has been selected for such an incredible award. I have created and run the business myself with only the help and support of my close family and friends who have done everything from being human guinea pigs testing products to helping bottle them in my kitchen. The current product range is about to expand and I’m excited to see the company grow into a much bigger beauty and cosmetics range which will all be kindr on skin!”

There was stiff competition with over 2,500 applications received in response to the Startup Awards National Series’ first-ever call for entries.

Supported nationally by BT, Dell & Intel, the programme will celebrate the achievements of the amazing individuals across the UK who have turned an idea into an opportunity and taken the risk to launch a new product or service.

Co-founded by the team behind the Great British Entrepreneur Awards, the new series follows the success of the Wales StartUp Awards, after organisers recognised the exceptional potential in the startup scene across the other British regions.

Professor Dylan Jones-Evans OBE, the creator of the StartUp Awards National Series, said: “New firms are important for generating economic prosperity, employment opportunities and innovation. Since 2016, the Wales StartUp Awards have celebrated this amazing annual contribution to our economy by entrepreneurs and the impact they have on communities across the nation. Given the sheer volume of phenomenal startups we’ve heard from since then, as well as the huge post-pandemic shift in people’s desires to take their career in a new direction and set up a business against the odds, we felt it was the right time to take the programme nationwide. We’ve been blown away by the standard of entries in this first year and truly look forward to crowning the winners in June.”