Ozwald Boateng, Boodles and Sunspel win at Walpole awards

The Walpole British Luxury Awards, which celebrates the contribution that luxury and high-end businesses make to the UK, honoured Boodles, Neal’s Yard Remedies, and fashion designer Ozwald at its 2023 event.

The awards featured ten categories celebrating design, innovation, talent and craftsmanship at the heart of Britain’s luxury sector, from luxury brand of the year to those driving forward UK manufacturing, sustainability and creativity.

Boodles, founded in 1789 in Liverpool and one of the few remaining family-owned jewellers on London’s Bond Street, scooped the prestigious ‘British Luxury Brand of the Year’ in recognition of a record-breaking financial year and its commitment to traceability, sustainable growth, and support of local communities in South Africa.

Ozwald Boateng, who became one of the youngest tailors to establish on Savile Row at the age of 28, blending traditional British tailoring with influences of colour from his Ghanaian heritage, was presented with the ‘Great Creative Briton' award, an accolade that honours the creatives whose talent has enriched the cultural landscape in the UK.

Sunspel, Boodles and Neal’s Yard Remedies among winners at the Walpole British Luxury Awards 2023

The ‘Made in the UK’ award was presented to Derbyshire-based clothing brand Sunspel in recognition for its strong commitment to the development of British manufacturing and accelerated expansion of the brand outside of the UK, which is now sold in 145 countries around the world.

Beauty and wellness brand Neal’s Yard Remedies took home the ‘Sustainable Luxury Brand of the Year’ award, voted for by an independent panel of judges, for its consistent progress in applying sustainability best practices to all aspects of its business and for its visible campaigning including its longstanding project to protect biodiversity and bee populations in the UK.

While the ‘Creative Collaboration’ honour was won by the Browns Hotel in London for the launch of its luxury Sir Paul Smith Suite, inspired by the British designer’s trademark use of colour and stripes, and fine jeweller Anabela Chan, known for championing laboratory-grown gemstones within its designs was celebrated with the ‘Game-Changer’ award.

Helen Brocklebank, chief executive of Walpole, which represents more than 250 British luxury companies, said in a statement: “Since their inception in 2001, the Walpole British Luxury Awards has celebrated the supercharged combination of culture, creativity and commerce that is a signature of British luxury’s global appeal.

“Fast forward to this evening’s awards and it’s clear that the defining mix of arts and business is still the bedrock of luxury’s success. In a country renowned for its storytelling, every Walpole award has a tale to tell of individual triumphs, of Britain’s extraordinarily rich and diverse history and of the talent, ingenuity, creativity and innovation of its people.”