Doreen Wilson Lofthouse, OBE (née Cowell; 27 February 1930 – 30 March 2021) was a British businesswoman. Leaving school with no qualifications, she found work at the Lofthouse of Fleetwood chemists. She married into the Lofthouse family and, with her husband Alan, opened a chemist's shop. Lofthouse became interested in one of the products, Fisherman's Friend, a liquid sold to soothe aching joints and ease coughs in seamen. She developed a solid lozenge format which she marketed more widely to the general public.
After becoming managing director of Lofthouse of Fleetwood, Doreen Lofthouse expanded the manufacturing of the lozenges and introduced distinctive red and black packaging. After divorce from Alan, she married his nephew Tony and the couple continued efforts to market the product, achieving their first export deal in 1974. Fisherman's Friend became particularly popular in Germany and Singapore and, by 2021, annual output was 5 billion lozenges and revenue was £55 million. Lofthouse received three Queen's Awards to Industry for her success.
In 1994, Lofthouse and her husband established a charitable foundation that donated tens of millions of pounds to a variety of causes in the Fleetwood area. For her work with the company and for charity, she was appointed an officer of the Order of the British Empire and was granted the freedom of the borough.