A Hampshire natural deodorant brand has won the highest award for British businesses for the second year in a row, receiving royal recognition.
Chandler's Ford-based Salt of the Earth has won a 2026 King’s Award for Enterprise in Sustainable Development, its second consecutive King’s Award after winning for international trade in 2025.
HM Lord-Lieutenant of Hampshire Nigel Atkinson presented the award at the refillable deodorant company’s headquarters on Tuesday, calling Salt of the Earth “an amazing company”.
Mr Atkinson said: "It is a great honour to be here today to present this award for sustainability on behalf of His Majesty the King.
"Of course, I know this company, having visited last year to present them with a previous award.
"It’s an amazing company, a good local company, and of course it is a small family business that has grown massively since Sally, the original founder, created the business.
"They are doing a great deal to help the environment and I congratulate them for what they have done."
Salt of the Earth was recognised for its sustainable products and manufacturing methods.
The refillable deodorant company has invested in solar and off-grid energy as it works towards becoming self-sufficient.
Managing director Thomas Laird said the business is preparing to expand overseas.
Mr Laird said: "We are looking to go into America, so we are looking to send our first shipment over in the next few months.
"That’s been something we’ve been looking to do for a long time."
He added: “I think one of the cool things is that we manufacture nearly everything in-house here, which I don’t think many companies do in the UK anymore, so it’s really nice to see pretty much everything being manufactured here from scratch and being shipped out the door here, powered by our solar panels.
“Sustainability has always been in the DNA of the company, with a focus on natural ingredients since we launched our first refillable spray in 2013.”
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Founder Sally Laird said: “We’re very proud, Thomas has taken the company forward which is very exciting and we’re very proud of the fact that he has managed to grow it and get these awards.
“It’s nice to get the recognition for all the things that we have taken so serious over the years.”
Its refill systems use 85 per cent less plastic than single-use alternatives and have replaced the equivalent of more than 2.3 million plastic bottles since launch.
The business has installed 126 solar panels and aims to become electricity-positive by 2027.
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