Barnsley-based Vamoosh has been honoured with a King’s Award for Enterprise for International Trade.
Vamoosh is one of only 185 organisations nationally to be recognised with a prestigious King’s Award for Enterprise in 2026. Announced today (Wednesday 6 May), the Award acknowledges the company’s outstanding achievement in International Trade, following a period of exceptional global expansion and export growth. This most recent award follows Vamoosh receiving the Queen’s Award for Enterprise for Innovation in 2022.
Employing a growing team, Vamoosh was founded in 2016 and has become a globally recognised innovation business redefining performance within laundry and household cleaning. Developed by Cares Laboratory and inspired by a real household problem, removing stubborn pet hair from fabrics, the brand launched its breakthrough Pet Hair Dissolver in 2017, creating an entirely new sub-category within laundry. The Vamoosh Pet Hair Dissolver is the world’s first and only product of its kind, patent-protected in over 30 countries, with the brand creating a new market segment internationally which has enabled them to create new global categories.
Since then, Vamoosh has expanded into a multi-product range including washing machine cleaners, fabric care solutions, and problem-solving household innovations, all underpinned by its science-led technology. The brand is now stocked in over 5,000 UK retail outlets across grocery, pet, DIY and value channels, and has sold millions of units, building strong consumer loyalty and retailer demand.
International growth has been a key driver of success, across the past 18 months export partners have grown 100% from 4 to 12 globally. Exports began in 2018 and have since increased by 440% over three years, with products now sold in more than 30 countries including Australia, Germany, South Africa, the NordicsandmostrecentlytheUSA. Transformationalwinsforthebrandincludemajorretailersincluding Target (USA), Aldi (Australia), EDEKA (Germany), and DM (across Europe), with many exciting new opportunities in the pipeline.
At the core of the Vamoosh business is partnerships, which underpin everything the work they do. Vamoosh select distributors who bring deep local expertise, retail relationships, and logistical capabilities. The brand invested in making themselves “global-ready”, which included redesigning packaging with simplified text and infographics, producing multilingual marketing assets, and creating subtitled video campaigns, ensuring their products are instantly recognisable, understandable and compliant across diverse markets.
These exports come from the brand headquarters Barnsley, South Yorkshire, giving Vamoosh complete oversight of quality, stock, warehousing, and logistics. All manufacturing is carried out under their proprietary specifications, with all third-party suppliers rigorously vetted, ensuring products meet our high standards across every market.
In the past 12 months alone, export growth reached 103% year-on-year, supported by an expanded distributor network and a landmark retail listing with Target in the United States, launching initially in 600 stores nationwide, positioning North America to become the company’s largest export market within three years.
“We’re absolutely delighted to receive the King’s Award for Enterprise for International Trade. To see the growth of Vamoosh recognised in such a prestigious way is an honour for the whole team. Over the last few years, we’ve worked incredibly hard to grow the brand internationally, bringing our patented innovations to households around the world, so it’s fantastic to see those ecorts recognised with the UK’s highest business award. This achievement is a real reflection of the passion, dedication and innovation across the entire Vamoosh team, and we’re excited for what the future holds.” – Tom Abbey, founder.
The King’s Awards for Enterprise, previously known as The Queen’s Awards for Enterprise, were renamed in 2023 to reflect His Majesty The King’s commitment to continuing the legacy of HM Queen Elizabeth II in celebrating exceptional UK businesses.
Now in its 60th year, the King’s Awards for Enterprise remain the UK’s most prestigious business accolades, with thousands of companies applying for the awards yet only 20% of applications successful. Winning organisations may use the esteemed King’s Awards Emblem for the next five years, signalling excellence to customers, partners, and global markets.
