The ‘Best New Brand’ honour in the Consumer Choice category celebrates Kay Beauty’s effortless rise from a homegrown success story to an emerging global beauty name.
Kay Beauty, the beauty brand co-founded by Actor and Global Icon Katrina Kaif and Nykaa, India’s leading beauty and lifestyle company, has been recognized with a prestigious honour at the CEW (Cosmetic Executive Women) UK Beauty Awards 2026. The recognition marks a significant milestone in Katrina Kaif’s core vision of building a globally relevant beauty brand rooted in inclusivity and a deep understanding of diverse beauty needs across the South Asian community.
The brand was awarded ‘Best New Brand’ in the Consumer Choice Awards category, held in partnership with Superdrug. CEW is a professional organization that promotes the British beauty industry, driving its dynamic growth in the global beauty economy. Founded in 1954, CEW connects all corners of the beauty industry via its members worldwide. The CEW Beauty Awards were launched in 2006 to recognize outstanding product innovation and creativity. Voted for by over 1,000 CEW members in the UK, including industry professionals and experts in the field of beauty, as well as consumers’ votes, the CEW Beauty Awards are recognized as one of the most coveted awards in the industry.
When Kay Beauty launched with Space NK last year, it marked a significant moment in the brand’s international growth journey and Katrina’s vision of taking an India-born beauty brand to a global audience. With its highly discerning beauty consumer and vibrant South Asian community, the UK represented an important market for its global expansion. As the first Indian-founded beauty brand to retail with Space NK, the launch signalled the increasing demand for South Asian representation on a global stage. Less than a year later, this recognition reflects the warm reception Kay Beauty has received from UK consumers.
Since its launch in 2019, Kay Beauty has championed high-performance beauty infused with skin-loving ingredients and thoughtfully developed for diverse skin tones, including the needs of South Asian consumers. The brand’s UK launch with Space NK introduced this approach to a new audience and has since been met with strong consumer and industry response, culminating in this latest recognition.
Katrina Kaif, Co-Founder, Kay Beauty said, “When we created Kay Beauty, our vision was to build a brand that truly understood and celebrated diverse beauty while delivering products that perform without compromise. From the very beginning, we wanted to create beauty solutions that were rooted in a deep understanding of South Asian beauty needs, while being relevant to a global audience. To receive recognition from both consumers and beauty industry insiders in the UK within such a short time of launching there is incredibly special. It’s especially meaningful because it reflects not just the strength of our products, but the connection we’ve built with our community over the years. Seeing Kay Beauty resonate with consumers beyond India is a proud moment for all of us, and we’re grateful to everyone who has been part of this journey. The CEW UK Beauty Award for the ‘Best New Brand’ inspires us to continue creating innovative, high-performance beauty that is inclusive, thoughtful and made with care.”
Adwaita Nayar, Co-Founder & Executive Director of Nykaa and CEO, House of Nykaa, said “Kay Beauty’s journey has always been rooted in the love and trust of its consumers. To receive the CEW UK Consumer Choice Award for Best New Brand, less than a year after our UK debut, is a remarkable milestone for the brand. As we continue to take Kay Beauty to new audiences around the world, it is incredibly rewarding to see consumers in the UK embrace the brand and everything it stands for. This recognition belongs to every consumer who has been a part of our journey and believed in our vision from the very beginning.”
The award marks an exciting milestone in Kay Beauty’s international growth journey and reinforces the brand’s ambition of taking Katrina Kaif’s vision for inclusive, high-performance beauty to consumers around the world.
Kay Beauty is exclusively available in the UK across select Space NK offline stores and on spacenk.com, and on the Nykaa app, nykaa.com, and at Nykaa retail stores across India.
About Kay Beauty
Founded in 2019, Kay Beauty is one of India’s leading makeup brands co-founded by Actor and Global Icon, Katrina Kaif and India’s leading beauty and lifestyle company, Nykaa. In just six years, it has emerged as one of India’s most loved and fastest-growing beauty brands. It has been recognized with prestigious accolades, including Vogue India’s Beauty Brand of the Year 2022 and several industry awards for innovation. With strong digital engagement and collaborations with leading beauty experts, Kay Beauty continues to set new benchmarks in the Indian beauty landscape. Drawing from Katrina’s personal journey and experiences with make-up, each Kay Beauty product is designed to deliver results whilst nourishing the skin. Formulated with skin-loving ingredients like chamomile, marula oil, ceramides, lychee extract, and avocado butter, the brand’s #MakeupThatKares philosophy ensures a seamless blend of care, comfort, and long-lasting wear. Kay Beauty is more than just a makeup brand; it’s a movement that celebrates authenticity and encourages self-expression.
Built on the pillars of performance, care, and inclusivity, Kay Beauty champions the idea that beauty is not about conforming, it’s about embracing who you truly are. Because #ItsKayToBeYou. The brand is loved across the country right from key metro cities, to tier 2 and tier 3 markets, fulfilling order demands of 2.8 Million+ customers till date in India. Kay Beauty has also expanded its offline presence, retailing in over 700+ premium stores across the country. The brand is exclusively available on the Kay Beauty website, Nykaa website and app, and at all Nykaa stores across India.
Over the past two years, the brand has also strengthened its international footprint. In 2024, the brand made its international debut in the GCC through Nysaa, where it has since grown to become one of the top five brands on Nykaa.com. Building on this momentum, Kay Beauty entered the United Kingdom in September 2025 through an exclusive partnership with leading beauty retailer Space NK, with availability both online and across stores nationwide. This milestone made Kay Beauty the first beauty brand founded in India to join Space NK’s curated portfolio of global beauty brands.
About Nykaa
Nykaa’s vision is to bring inspiration and joy to people everywhere, every day. Born from a desire to make beauty a mainstream choice, the Nykaa journey began in 2012 as a digital-first, consumer-tech beauty company. Falguni Nayar’s entrepreneurial leap with Nykaa tapped into an underserved beauty retail market, disrupting the ecosystem and putting India in the global spotlight. Today, Nykaa has expanded its offerings to include fashion and B2B, launching platforms such as Nykaa Fashion, Nykaa Man, and Nykaa Superstore. Nykaa has also expanded into the Middle East through its omnichannel beauty offering ‘Nysaa’.
Over the years, Nykaa has steadily captured the hearts of consumers, serving over 55 million customers (as of 31 March 2026) through its online platforms and 331 offline beauty destinations (as of 31 March 2026), while building loyal communities through engaging and educative content.
House of Nykaa – Nykaa continues to build its house of brands with a sharp focus on innovation and consumer delight. Nykaa Cosmetics, Dot & Key, Kay Beauty, Nykaa Collections, Nykaa Wanderlust, Nykaa Perfumes, Earth Rhythm alongside celebrated fashion labels such as Nykd by Nykaa, KICA, 20 Dresses, RSVP, and Gajra Gang, have become household names, consistently delivering inspiration and high-performing products to consumers.
Nykaa’s unwavering commitment to authenticity and customer-centricity has cemented its position as the retailer of choice for international brands looking to enter the Indian market. With Nykaa’s Global Store, a gateway to some of the world’s most coveted brands, the company harnesses its powerful supply chain and marketing expertise to create a flawless shopping experience. Trusted by renowned global names like Chanel Fragrance and Beauty, SK-II, Nike, H&M, Charlotte Tilbury, Elf Cosmetics, Urban Decay, Foot Locker, Revolve, and Cider, Nykaa has empowered these iconic brands to connect with Indian consumers and make a lasting impact in the market.
Nykaa has been recognized with prestigious accolades, including a place in the TIME100 Most Influential Companies List and the Isidoro Alvarez Lifetime Achievement Medal at the World Retail Congress in Barcelona. Falguni Nayar, Founder and CEO, has also won personal honours such as EY Entrepreneur of the Year and Power Businesswoman by Forbes Asia.
