Laura Keir, CEO of Speke-based lifestyle nutrition brand Protein Works, has been named Business Woman of the Year at the 2026 Women of the Year Awards.
The award recognise her leadership and entrepreneurial success in building one of the UK’s fastest-growing food and beverage businesses.
Keir was named the overall winner from 16 finalists, following more than 400 nominations, at the annual awards, which celebrate outstanding female achievement and leadership across business and wider society.
Since taking the helm as CEO in 2024, she has led Protein Works through a significant period of growth and transformation. The business reported revenue of approximately £55 million in FY25, up from £50.7m the previous year, and opened its £10m PW Campus in Speke, bringing manufacturing, fulfilment, operations, marketing, technology and product development together under one roof.
In June 2026, Protein Works entered a new chapter following its strategic acquisition by Lactalis, the world’s leading dairy group, creating further opportunities for the brand to expand its reach and accelerate its growth.
“I’m incredibly proud to have been named Business Woman of the Year,” said Keir. “To be recognised alongside so many inspiring women is a real privilege, and it means a great deal to bring this award back to Liverpool.
“Getting to know the Women of the Year community has been a real highlight. It’s a group of women who genuinely champion one another, share opportunities and want to make a difference. Being part of that is something special.”
The awards ceremony took place at the new City Hall development at Manchester’s Etihad Stadium, welcoming more than 400 guests to celebrate female achievement, ambition and resilience.
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Established in 1982, Women of the Year is one of the UK’s longest-running awards programmes celebrating women’s achievements across business and public life.
Other winners at this year’s ceremony included Sophie Ford-Wilkinson, Founding Trustee of The Holly House Charitable Foundation, who received the Freeths Woman with Edge Award, and writer and human rights campaigner Zerbanoo Gifford, who received the Emmeline Pankhurst Award for Woman of Achievement. The event also paid tribute to the late Baroness Helen Newlove, former Victims’ Commissioner for England and Wales, with a Lifetime Achievement Award recognising her work for victims’ rights and community safety.