TheIndustry.beauty Awards Winners’ Interview: Neom founder Nicola Elliott on innovation, category expansion and global growth

TheIndustry.beauty Innovators Awards 2026 celebrated the people, products and businesses driving the beauty industry forward - recognising not only groundbreaking innovations, but also the diverse range of expertise, disciplines and leadership required to achieve true market distinction.

Presented by specialist recruitment firm LT Talent, TheIndustry.beauty named Neom Wellbeing the winner of the Best New Product: Bath & Body (Prestige & Luxe) award for its Pro-Vitamin D3 Dry Body Oil.

Neom Wellbeing is a British luxury brand creating 100% natural fragrances and products designed to support everyday physical and mental wellbeing. Since its launch in 2005, the brand has become synonymous with its candles, diffusers and bath and bodycare ranges. Its award-winning launch, the Pro-Vitamin D3 Dry Body Oil, taps into the growing popularity of body oils, promising a luxurious, sensorial experience that elevates the everyday routine.

In this exclusive interview, founder Nicola Elliott shares her approach to identifying gaps in the market and transforming consumer insights into successful, much-loved products. She also discusses the development of the Pro-Vitamin D3 Dry Body Oil, what sets the product apart in an increasingly competitive bodycare market, and what the future holds for Neom Wellbeing.

And in our exclusive video from this year’s awards ceremony, we hear from Product Director Louise Moore and Global Marketing Director Claire Wain on the making of the product and the future of the beauty industry.

What are the core values that define Neom and how are they brought to life across the business?

I built Neom Wellbeing on a simple belief that small, daily steps in your wellbeing routine can genuinely change how you feel - that's the whole premise of "supercharge wellbeing", which has been our mission for twenty years.

For me, it's all about finding micro-moments of wellbeing that can make a big difference to our community's day-to-day; helping them ‘find their feel-good’, morning-to-night.

It also shows up in commitments we make - such as every fragrance we blend being 100% natural; it's scent that does more than smell good; it's scent to boost your wellbeing, using scientifically proven, complex scent blends to help with daily Sleep, Stress, Energy and Mood.

Internally, it's carried by three brand values: Be a Good Egg (could be the Northerner in me - it means generally just be a decent person), Attitude is Everything and Challenge the Status Quo.

We're also a certified B Corp, which means we're independently held to standards on how we treat people and the planet, not just what we put into our products.

What's your approach to identifying gaps in the market and how do you transform those insights into successful, consumer-loved products?

Never a beauty trend. It's always good to read insights and trend reports, but our products come from the heart. I always try to create products that truly fit with 'pain points' in my own life - those real, lived daily moments where we need a boost - meaning you might need some pocket-sized calm on your daily commute (or before a tough meeting at work), or a little morning energy when the alarm/kids wake you up at 5.30am!

Our four pillars - ‘Better Sleep, Less Stress, More Energy, and Mood Boost’ - give us a discipline: if a product idea doesn't clearly serve one of those wellbeing needs, it doesn't get made, however on-trend it is.

An example of this is our Real Luxury scent (made with a complex blend of 19 of the purest possible essential oils), which sits within our De-stress pillar, and was initially created to help my own anxiety when working as a journalist in London back in the early '00s, when wellbeing really wasn't a mainstream 'thing'!

We also spend a lot of time listening to our community and customers about what they're struggling with day-to-day, then ask where 100% natural fragrance and aromatherapy science can genuinely work to help.

The Dry Body Oil won at The Industry Beauty Awards. In your view, what set this product apart and resonated most with both judges and wider consumers?

The ‘Great Day’ Pro-Vitamin D3 Dry Body Oil sold out online at launch. I'm not surprised! It is one of those unique products that delivers on two levels at once.

Firstly, as well as the Pro-Vitamin D3, it is infused with coconut oil, jojoba oil, olive fruit, sunflower seed and soybean oils, it's an extremely high-performing dry oil (in our own consumer trial, 97% of people said it left skin feeling hydrated, instantly softened and nourished after two weeks' use*) and, secondly, in true Neom Wellbeing style, it contains 100% natural mood-boosting fragrances including wild mint and mandarin, chosen specifically to boost mood, rather than just to smell good.

I think that's what judges and customers both responded to: it doesn't ask you to choose between efficacy and wellbeing. It also earns its place in a routine because it's genuinely easy to use (and love!), and it answers one of the biggest customer frustrations with body oils - it sinks in straight away! Customers absolutely love the fact that it absorbs very quickly without any greasy residue, so they can get dressed immediately afterwards.

*Independent blind consumer study of 74 people, after initial use over two weeks.

Can you share some insights into the development process behind the product? What were the key priorities you focused on to ensure the product delivered on performance and overall user experience?

I was clear from the outset that this couldn't just be a nice-smelling oil; it had to perform, full stop. We centre our body care around ‘Body with Benefits’ - not just having a skin benefit, but also having a wellbeing benefit through the power of 100% natural fragrances.

A dry oil lives or dies on whether it feels light and absorbs quickly, rather than sitting as a greasy film on the skin; so, texture and absorption were tested as rigorously as the fragrance. We wanted it to feel silky, not sticky; hydrating, not heavy.

We built the formula around Pro-Vitamin D3 and a blend of five skin oils - coconut, soybean and jojoba oils, olive fruit, and sunflower seed - and then validated it with real consumers over two weeks.

The other non-negotiable was that the fragrance - wild mint and mandarin - had to earn its place and deliver mood-boosting benefits, tying back to our Mood wellbeing pillar. 89% said the fragrance left their mood feeling instantly boosted*, so we knew we were delivering a product that was about radiant skin but also gave a ‘feel-good’ glow!

*Independent blind consumer study of 74 people, after initial use over two weeks.

What did winning the Best New Product: Bath & Body (Prestige & Luxe) represent for Neom and how does this recognition reflect the brand's achievements, vision and contribution to the industry?

It matters because it's a category judged by peers who understand exactly how hard it is to make a naturally fragranced, wellbeing-led product perform at a prestige level - it's an efficacy and innovation call.

For us at Neom, it's validation of an approach I have built the whole brand around for twenty years: that 100% natural fragrance and genuine performance aren't a trade-off you have to make.

For the team behind this product and the launch specifically, it's recognition of work that started with a wellbeing benefit - reinforcing that our venture into ‘Body with Benefits’, where skin, scent and science all come together, is being recognised by the industry on its own terms, as well as being loved by our community.

How does innovation drive Neom's growth strategy and how does the brand identify, develop and respond to emerging consumer needs and market opportunities?

In my eyes, innovation starts with the four wellbeing pillars, not the product or marketing calendar. We track how people's sleep, stress, energy and mood needs are shifting both in the market and within our own wellness community.

Today, that includes things like the blur between work and rest, and a real fatigue with vague "self-care" claims that don't do anything, and then we look at where aromatherapy science can genuinely respond.

We're seeing more demand for products that do more than smell good, but ones that also do something for your mood, and this has been in Neom's heartland since day one.

The Pro-Vitamin D3 Dry Body Oil is a good example of that discipline in practice: dry oils and mists have grown because people want fast, low-effort formats, so we innovated within that shift rather than against it, but were able to deliver a wellbeing benefit given 100% natural fragrances sit within our DNA, and our complex scent blends are proven to deliver a wellbeing benefit.

Growth comes from staying strict about that link between a real, evidenced consumer need and a proven, credible response, rather than innovating for novelty's sake.

What do you believe are the biggest opportunities and challenges shaping the beauty sector today and how is Neom positioned to navigate this evolving landscape?

The biggest challenge is that consumers are more price-conscious and less loyal than they've been in years - the rise of "dupes" has put real pressure on prestige brands to prove why they're worth the difference.

We see Beauty and Wellness converging quickly, which is exactly where the Neom brand sits, at the intersection of both, but we can see that different generations want different things. That's where the opportunity sits for us at Neom, given our cross-generational appeal and strong gifting pull.

Brands that can also clearly back up wellbeing claims with real evidence rather than vague "neuro" or "self-care" language, and that communicate authenticity, are the ones that will earn trust in a crowded, more sceptical market.

The discipline I uphold with the team at Neom is that of tying every product to a specific wellbeing outcome, and holding ourselves accountable to using only sophisticated, pure essential oil blends, as well as 100% natural fragrances, even if the development process takes longer and is more costly (because it usually, always is!).

What does the future look like for Neom and what ambitions and priorities will shape the brand's next chapter of growth?

The next chapter is about scaling globally, with a focus on the USA, given our position as the anchor wellness brand in ULTA Beauty.

We've spent years building the brand in the UK home market, with a credible foundation showing the power of 100% natural fragrances, with proven wellbeing benefits.

Now, the ambition is to bring it to more people in more markets without cutting corners on our formulation, efficacy, or on our impact commitments.

Practically, that means continuing to move beyond home fragrance into other formats and categories, such as bodycare, where our products can demonstrate ‘scent with purpose’ and genuinely help; holding every innovation accountable to the same four-pillar test: does it help someone sleep better, stress less, find more energy, or lift their mood?

Louise Moore, Product Director and Clare Wain, Global Marketing Director at TheIndustry.beauty Awards 2026.

As the Best New Product: Bath & Body (Prestige & Luxe) award was presented by LT Talent, we asked the recruitment partner about its role in supporting the beauty industry.

What sets LT Talent apart as a strategic partner for beauty brands in today’s market?

We look at recruitment through a wider lens. It’s not just about finding someone who can do the job today, but understanding what the business needs now, where it’s heading next, and finding the person who can help deliver that growth - or at least put the foundations in place for what comes after.

Beauty is a fast-moving, highly competitive industry, and the right hire can make a real difference to where the business goes next. That means understanding far more than a job description. We need to understand the founder and senior leaders, the culture, the growth plans, the pressure points in the business and what that person actually needs to achieve once they join.

We’re also deliberately founder-led. Clients work directly with us from brief through to hire and beyond, so there are no hand-offs and no loss of context. We combine that personal involvement with a specialist network built over many years across beauty, personal care and wellness, which gives us access to both active candidates and industry proven specialists who may not be looking.

For us, the value is in knowing the market, knowing the talent, challenging a brief when necessary and helping clients identify the person they genuinely need - not just the person they originally thought they needed.

How central is having the right team in place to driving long-term brand success?

It’s fundamental and it should never be overlooked!

You can have a brilliant product, strong investment and a great brand, but ultimately, people are the ones who turn all of that potential into growth and success.

As businesses scale, the impact of each hire becomes even greater. The right commercial leader can open entirely new channels. The right marketer can transform customer acquisition and retention. The right operations or supply chain hire can create the infrastructure needed to grow without everything falling over behind the scenes.

But it isn’t purely about technical experience either. Particularly within founder-led and high-growth brands, we look very closely at mindset. Can someone operate at pace? Can they deal with ambiguity? Will they take ownership rather than wait for direction? Can they adapt as the business changes?

A CV can tell you what somebody has done. It doesn’t always tell you how they operate. Long-term success comes from getting both of those things right from the start.

How is the beauty industry evolving and how does LT Talent help brands stay ahead by identifying and attracting the skills, expertise, and leadership needed for future growth?

Beauty is evolving incredibly quickly. It’s no longer just beauty. Brands are crossing into wellness, nutrition, health, lifestyle and tech more than ever. This means they also need to be much sharper on the commercial side of the business - understanding where growth is really coming from, what it’s costing them, and which areas of the business will drive sustainable growth.

It is no longer enough to have a great product and strong social presence. Businesses now need expertise across areas such as performance marketing, retention, CRM, data, retail expansion, international growth, marketplaces, operations and supply chain - often much earlier in their journey than they would have historically.

We’re also seeing roles become broader and more commercially accountable. A marketing leader today, for example, may need to understand brand, performance, customer acquisition costs, lifetime value and retention rather than operating within one narrow discipline.

Our role is to stay close to those shifts and advise clients accordingly. Because we recruit every day within the industry, we can see where demand for talent is moving, which skills are becoming harder to find and what strong candidates are expecting from their next opportunity.

That allows us to help brands think ahead rather than simply react to an immediate vacancy. Sometimes the most valuable conversation we have with a client is not “who can we find?” but “what capability does your business need next?”

That is where we believe recruitment becomes genuinely strategic.

TheIndustry.beauty Innovators Awards will be back for 2027.
For sponsorship enquiries, please email partnerships@theindustry.beauty.