Tom Martlew: Co-founder of Nito Design
Tom is a 23-year-old designer and co-founder of Nito Design, along with his business partner Nic. Tom is based in Kendal and spent much of his young life in the outdoors. He loves the Lakes and enjoys mountain biking, hiking and a bit of surfing. His plans are to travel, and the beauty of design is that you can work anywhere if you have a computer and software. The pandemic has made remote-working a much more acceptable business practice, allowing young businesses to become international.
I first heard of Tom’s business when someone told me a story about two graduates who had recently set up a business and then turned down a big contract with an Asian firm because of ethical reasons. I was very impressed by such strong, ethical decision-making from such a young business.
The Force4Good initiative is about taking positive action in support of the sustainable development goals and this was a great example of a small business taking a stand. I decided to approach Tom and he quickly agreed to create the designs for F4G.
For such a young age, I am very impressed with Tom’s commitment to the environment, the Lake District, and to ethical practice. Making ethical business decisions is always full of challenge and I wish Nito Design well.