Lesley Gilchrist, registered midwife and co-founder of Harrogate-based My Expert Midwife has been named in the 2023 E2E Female 100 list in association with The Independent newspaper. The list, which was independently verified by data from Experian and Go Live Data, celebrates the most influential, fastest growing and highest performing female-led businesses in the UK.
Celebrating women in business throughout a host of sectors, E2E 100 is a significant initiative designed to showcase the very best UK companies that are excelling, experiencing consistent growth and presenting disruptive business strategies, creating an impact not just in their own sector, but also on a nationwide and in some cases a global scale. Looking at the company’s consistent growth of employees over a period of three years, Experian and Go Live Data have pulled the data from across the entire UK to crown the top 100 women.
My Expert Midwife was established in 2017 by registered midwife, Lesley Gilchrist and massage specialist, Claire Charlton. Drawing from their personal experience and professional expertise of caring for women throughout pregnancy, the brand launched a range of no-nonsense products developed to tackle taboos around pregnancy and childbirth for new and expectant mums and new babies. At the heart of the business is a team of expert midwives with 140+ years of combined experience in midwifery.
The brand currently has a portfolio of 24 products all designed to help women prepare and recover during pregnancy, birth and early parenthood alongside midwife-developed webinars, antenatal classes and e-books. Spritz for Bits, the brand’s iconic and award-winning perineal recovery spray, has helped over 300,000 women recover following childbirth. Products are sold online and in Boots, John Lewis, Asda, Sephora, Ocado, JoJo Maman Bébé and Next and are glowingly recommended by thousands of mums.
Speaking about the E2E Female 100, Shalini Khemka CBE and founder of E2E said: “To see so many extraordinary multigenerational women in the top 100 from a host of innovative sectors is a testament to the amazing work so many women are achieving, daily. From vegan kitchens to finance and leadership, the diverse range of businesses which have not only been founded, survived or thrived during the pandemic is incredible. Each and every person on this list should be incredibly proud of what they have achieved and will continue to achieve in the years to come.”
Lesley Gilchrist, registered midwife and co-founder of My Expert Midwife said “Our driving vision is to help all parents-to-be on their journey to parenthood, every step of the way, from preconception, through pregnancy and birth, to recovery and caring for their new baby, whether that be through our expert information guides and eBooks, our midwife-developed products or our antenatal education services.
“Supporting women through such a vulnerable time in their lives is at the very heart of our business, so to be recognised in the E2E Female 100 alongside so many other exceptional female-founded businesses is a huge honour and the list is testament to the importance of female-founded businesses to the economy.”
Assistant Editor of the Independent, Caroline Gammell said: “We're delighted to be featuring such an exceptional group of women who are powerhouses in their own individual sectors and who have seen exceptional growth over the past three years. The E2E Female 100, in association with The Independent, gives us the chance to showcase the amazing female talent around the UK and to inspire the next generation of female entrepreneurs, who are a much-needed part of our future economy. We can't wait to see what they do next and are looking forward to championing female leaders for many more years to come.”
