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24
Nov
Meet the woman tasked with helping growth in North Yorkshire
After running a Ripon company with a turnover of £30 million, Jennifer Wood wanted a new challenge, so she founded O&3 Limited which sells oils, shampoos and handwashes across the world.
Now, the 43-year-old is tasked with helping York and North Yorkshire grow economically as part of a business board picked by Mayor David Skaith.
Speaking to the Stray Ferret ahead of her first meeting, Ms Wood said she wanted to listen to businesses and support them to develop.
She said:
I’m from Yorkshire, I was born in Northallerton. I’m passionate about this region. I fundamentally believe there is so much more that we can do as a region by perhaps readdressing how we portray ourselves nationally.
I have the privilege of a bit more time on my side now and I want to try and engage other like-minded individuals to come around the table to deliver on what we have to offer. We know how good we are. We need more business and sectors not just nationally, but internationally to understand what we can offer.
Ms Wood, who is a graduate of the University of St Andrews and has a masters in economics, co-founded O&3 Limited with her siblings, Eleanor Wade and Thomas Kerfoot, following a spell as chief executive of The Kerfoot Group, the oils company founded by her father, David Kerfoot MBE. The Kerfoot Group was a major player in the oils industry before it was sold to a French company in 2015.
She grew the O&3, which is based in Hutton Conyers, into a 75-strong wholesaler that now exports beauty and personal care products to 62 countries.
Mayor of York and North Yorkshire David Skaith and Business Board Chair Jennifer Wood outside of O&3 Limited, Ripon.
She later sold 90% of the business to a Dutch company IMCD in 2023, but still oversees the firm with a minority shareholding.
When asked why she wanted to join the combined authority’s new business board, she said she wanted a new challenge and opted to apply to join the initiative.
Ms Wood said:
As I took the opportunity to reflect on my path and my journey following the acquisition by IMCD of my majority shareholding, I was trying to see what I could do regionally and beyond just growing a business that would positively impact businesses like my own.
There was an advert to apply once the mayor had been appointed, so I applied and put my CV and personal statement in.
Mr Skaith set up the business board with the aim of helping to shape economic growth in the region.
Thirteen industry leaders sit on the board, including Rebecca Layton, owner of Layton Hill Hotels which owns the Old Deanery in Ripon, and Andy Makin, managing director of Harrogate-based EnviroVent Limited.
Ms Wood will chair the board and hopes it will help to target a range of sectors for growth.
She said:
We’re in a period of change. We have an opportunity to readdress some fundamental issues with a different skillset around the table.
We need to start listening. We need to start listening more to those businesses, start-ups and SMEs across our region and bringing that to the table and try to start to deliver.
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