Two childhood friends reinvented deodorant as an aluminum case plus compostable refills, scaling from a £100K prelaunch to £46.9M revenue and a ~£230M Unilever exit.
Wild sells a natural deodorant system: a durable, colorful aluminum case bought once, plus refills packaged in compostable bamboo pulp, on a subscription or one-off basis (~£12 case, ~£5-6 refills). The vegan, aluminum-free formula went through 35+ iterations for 24-hour protection. The design-led, Instagram-friendly cases come in limited-edition scents and artist collaborations, sold DTC and later in Boots, Sainsbury's and Holland & Barrett. The breakthrough versus existing natural deodorants was combining efficacy, zero single-use plastic, and a genuinely premium object people wanted to show off - plus the razor-and-blades refill model that keeps customers recurring.
Ward, a HelloFresh marketer, and Bowes-Lyon, who had run a viral reusable-cup side business, tested an MVP in 2019, raised £500K from angels after 100+ rejections, and pre-sold £100K before launch. Launching into Covid lockdowns (April 2020), they grew 4,000% that year, run-rating £10M within six months against a five-year plan of £10M, while nearly running out of inventory repeatedly. They deliberately stayed one-product-focused before adding lip balm, body wash and other refills, expanded to Europe in 2021 and wholesale in 2022, and reached £46.9M revenue in 2023 (up 77%) as a profitable, certified B Corp. In April 2025 Unilever acquired Wild for a reported ~£230M, one of the UK's standout consumer exits of the decade.
Figures are compiled from public sources and may include estimates. Always verify before making business decisions.
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