The LDC Top 50 Most Ambitious Business Leaders 2025 has unveiled its new cohort of the UK’s most dynamic and visionary entrepreneurs, marking the eighth year of the national awards programme that celebrates the country’s growth champions.
Created by LDC, the private equity arm of Lloyds Banking Group, in partnership with The Times, the programme recognises the founders and chief executives behind Britain’s fastest-growing and most innovative medium-sized businesses.
This year’s Top 50 were chosen from almost 700 nominations, reflecting a diverse group of leaders who are not only driving financial success but also creating jobs, championing sustainability, and making an impact in their communities. Together, they employ nearly 10,000 people across 67 towns and cities and generate combined revenues of £1.2 billion.
The winners were celebrated at a gala ceremony at BAFTA in London, where category winners — including The UK’s Most Ambitious Business Leader of 2025 — were officially announced.
The overall title of The UK’s Most Ambitious Business Leader 2025 went to Mark Fitzgerald, founder of CTR Group, a recycling and reuse specialist based in Marchington, Staffordshire.
Since founding CTR in 2014, Fitzgerald has grown the business to £45 million turnover, working with companies across the UK and Europe. Guided by a mission to “waste nothing, reuse everything and protect the planet”, the company processes 1,300 tonnes of unwanted goods each week, repurposing materials for reuse in disadvantaged communities worldwide.
Judges praised Fitzgerald’s resilience, clarity of purpose and vision for sustainable growth, describing him as a “leader transforming the waste industry from the ground up”.
Recognising innovation, growth and social impact
The 2025 awards showcased entrepreneurs driving innovation across every sector of the economy — from tech and retail to education, manufacturing and sustainability.
Barty Walsh, co-founder of ORDO, received The Growth Award for turning the personal care start-up into one of the UK’s fastest-growing oral care brands. Since its launch in 2019, ORDO has achieved 350% revenue growth and 30-fold profit increases, redefining the electric toothbrush market.
Pip Murray, founder of Pip & Nut, took home The Impact Award for building a certified B Corp that supports regenerative farming and produces palm-oil-free, carbon-neutral nut butters. Her company has grown from a small market stall to the UK’s leading nut butter brand, now stocked in 5,000 stores and on track for £40 million turnover next year.
The Trailblazer Award went to Manny Athwal, founder of School of Coding and AI, who turned personal adversity into an international business success. After teaching himself to code, Athwal built a multimillion-pound company now educating 3,000 students across 17 countries each year.
Jos van der Steen and Peter Cliff, co-founders of CONDUCTR, won The International Award for exporting Manchester’s creative talent to a global stage. The duo’s attractions business has designed high-profile projects such as The Curse at Alton Manor and an interactive LED sports court for Norwegian Cruise Line, expanding operations to North America and the Middle East.
Leading change through innovation and sustainability
Innovation took centre stage in this year’s awards. Lee Brooks, founder of Production Park, received The Innovation Award for turning South Kirkby into a global hub for live entertainment production. The site now attracts the world’s biggest artists — including Beyoncé and Coldplay — and is projected to hit £30 million in revenue this year.
Caroline Briggs of Amici was honoured with The Disruptor Award for transforming laboratory operations through intelligent LabOps software. Her system enables biotech and pharmaceutical companies to run labs more efficiently and compliantly, revolutionising procurement in the life sciences industry.
Josie Morris MBE, managing director of Woolcool, claimed The Sustainability Award for pioneering wool-based packaging as a natural alternative to plastic. Under her leadership, Woolcool has become the UK’s first packaging company to achieve B Corp certification, diverting more than 3,000 tonnes of polystyrene from landfill last year.
The People Award went to Peter Ellse, founder of Cosy Direct, who has built a company culture centred on inclusivity and flexibility. Employing part-time parents, ex-offenders, apprentices and neurodivergent adults, Cosy Direct now trades in 46 countries and donates 10% of profits to grassroots charities.
Mike Brennan, CEO of Outdo, received The Resilience Award for growing the Halifax-based outdoor media company despite personal tragedy. Outdo now manages 30,000 advertising sites nationwide, employs 75 people and has tripled turnover in five years.
The Youth Ambition Award — supported by The King’s Trust Enterprise Programme — was awarded to Kwame Boateng, founder of Ingrained Oil, for creating a skin-friendly, cruelty-free fragrance brand while still a university student.
The Rising Star Awards went to Russell Teale of Vivify, Laura Earnshaw of myHappyMind, and Nazanin Nankali of Powertutors, who are each driving transformative impact in education and wellbeing.
The Alumni Award celebrated Martin Taylor of Content Guru, who first appeared in the Top 50 in 2020 and has since expanded his cloud communications firm to a projected £80 million turnover.
Finally, Andrew McLernon and Jay Gorga of Interlink received Highly Commended: One to Watch, recognising their AI-driven innovation and people-first leadership in digital lead generation.
Reflecting on this year’s cohort, John Garner, Managing Partner at LDC, said the Top 50 continues to highlight the strength and resilience of the UK’s entrepreneurial economy.
“In the eight years since we launched The LDC Top 50, we’ve had the honour of meeting some exceptional business leaders,” Garner said. “This year’s group have shown remarkable drive and ambition, building businesses that are making a difference to their people, communities and society at large. Their success stories are only just beginning.”
