FIT Show and Women in Fenestration: Charlotte Hawkes

By: George Lewis / 7 May 2026 /

As part of its ‘Give to Gain’ spotlight on Women in Fenestration, organisers of the FIT Show, pose the questions to Charlotte Hawkes, Founder and Director at Keystone Market Research.

Q: Job title, company, and how long you’ve been in fenestration?

Founder & Director, Keystone Market Research, almost 20 years!

Q: What do you love most about working in the sector?

The people! It’s such a friendly, supportive industry.

Q: The IWD theme for 2026 is Give to Gain – what has the fenestration industry given you that you didn’t expect, personally or professionally?

So much, it took 17 year old me who had no idea what I wanted to do and gave me the opportunity to travel the world, create some brilliant memories, develop my career, a sense of belonging in this community, and ultimately build a business that now gives me the work/life balance to be able to spend lots of time with my young daughter before she goes to school while also feeling like I’m contributing meaningfully to companies throughout the industry with my research.

Q: Who has ‘given to gain’ for you – a woman who opened doors or shared opportunities?

There are so many women in this industry that have inspired and supported me over the years – too many to name. All the wonderful ladies I completed Paddle2Pedal with for GM Fundraising all those years ago deserve special mention though – I think that challenge and spending so much time with such strong amazing women had a profound effect and was a turning point for lots involved.

But I think it’s important to mention, particularly in a, progressively less so but still, male-dominated industry, that it’s the men that have opened doors and shared opportunities to women also that makes a massive difference.

Women’s equality doesn’t change without change from both sides of the spectrum, and I’ve been extremely grateful over the years to have had so many brilliant male & female champions and mentors.

So probably not answering the question properly, but sincerely, I think overall my biggest supporter who has ‘given to gain’ for me was my previous boss Chris Alderson from Edgetech, who gave me the trust, support and experience at a senior level to allow me to grow, and then despite it being the opposite of what he wanted, the confidence to leave the company to set up my current business!

Q: How do you plan to ‘give to gain’ over the coming months – mentoring, knowledge sharing, etc.?

Whether it’s an introduction to a customer I’m working with, a free report to help them understand the market and position themselves or their customers more effectively, or even just to cheer them from the sidelines – I love to support and see other women in our industry be successful and I jump at every opportunity to be part of making that happen.