WEST MIDLANDS BUSINESS NAMED ONE OF THE NATION’S FAVOURITES IN 2026

Independent West Midlands business COW Home & Body has been named as one of the Nation’s Favourite Businesses by the Small Business Saturday campaign, as it kicks off its annual call to champion and support the nation’s favourite small businesses.

The home fragrance and body care business was founded by Ryan-Mark Pritchard in September 2022, starting from a family home with its entire stock fitting into just three kitchen drawers.

Less than four years later, COW Home & Body has dispatched thousands of products to customers across the country, developed a growing range of home fragrance, bath, body and personal fragrance products, and expanded into dedicated warehouse premises in Staffordshire.

Following a nationwide search, the West Midlands firm has been selected as part of this year’s Nation’s Favourite Businesses line-up, in a shake-up from the campaign’s long-standing SmallBiz100.

COW Home & Body has also been invited to the House of Lords later this year to celebrate the achievement, marking an extraordinary milestone for a business that began on such a small scale.

The Nation’s Favourite Businesses campaign will showcase each business as part of the official countdown to Small Business Saturday on 5 December – a grassroots, non-commercial campaign, originally founded by American Express in the U.S. in 2010, and with American Express as principal supporter in the UK, aimed at celebrating and uplifting independent firms by encouraging the public to support and spend with small businesses.

Ryan-Mark Pritchard, Founder of COW Home & Body, said:

“Being selected as one of the Nation’s Favourite Businesses is quite difficult to put into words.

“When we started COW in 2022, our entire stock fitted into three drawers in the kitchen. We certainly weren’t thinking that less than four years later we’d have our own warehouse, thousands of products dispatched across the country and an invitation to the House of Lords.

“What makes this recognition particularly special is knowing that our customers and community have helped us get here. Every order, recommendation, review, social media share and conversation at an event has played a part in COW’s story.

“We’ve made friends with customers across the country, supported other independent UK businesses through our supply chain, raised money for charity and even found ourselves getting emotional over photographs and videos of people opening COW products on Christmas morning.

“There are millions of small businesses across the UK doing incredible things every day, so to have COW recognised as one of the Nation’s Favourite Businesses is something we’re immensely proud of.

“COW has grown into something we could only have imagined when we started. Going from three drawers in a kitchen to national recognition and an invitation to the House of Lords in less than four years feels slightly surreal – and we’re definitely not stopping here.”

“Small businesses have always been, and will continue to be, among the nation’s favourite businesses. Whether on our high streets, online or embedded in local communities, they play a vital role in the places we live and in the strength of our economy,” said Michelle Ovens CBE, Director of Small Business Saturday UK.

“This year’s Nation’s Favourite Businesses are a true representation of the UK’s most-loved small businesses. From independent, family-run cafés and local restaurants, to makers, services and traders, they showcase the incredible diversity of the UK’s small business community. We know how important small businesses are and the challenges they face, so as we kick off this year’s Small Business Saturday campaign, we’re urging the public to get behind them during the most critical trading quarter of the year.”

Dan Edelman, General Manager, UK Merchant Services at American Express, said: “Small businesses bring energy, innovation and character to our high streets and local economies. That’s why American Express is proud to have founded Small Business Saturday and why we continue to back small businesses to help them thrive. This year’s Nation’s Favourite Businesses are a brilliant showcase of the UK’s entrepreneurial spirit, and we’re delighted to be providing grant funding that will help two of these inspiring businesses invest in their next chapter of growth.”

Small Business Saturday is the UK’s most successful small business campaign. Since launching in the UK in 2013, it has engaged millions of people and seen billions of pounds spent with small businesses across the UK on Small Business Saturday, with an impact that lasts all year round.

Last year, the campaign saw extensive media coverage, as well as public support from the Royal Family, the Prime Minister and Chancellor, leader of the opposition, the Mayor of London, and over 90% of the nation’s local councils.

To learn more about Small Business Saturday’s Nation’s Favourite Businesses, visit the Small Business Saturday UK website.