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Exclusive Interview with Mr. Mathew Joseph, CEO & Co-Founder, Sleepyhead

Mathew Joseph, CEO & Co-Founder, Sleepyhead

-SWS editorial Team

We at Shreyas WebMedia Solutions (SWS) thank Mr. Mathew Joseph- CEO & Co-Founder, Sleepyhead for the exclusive interview opportunity. Mr. Mathew Joseph (MJ) discussed Sleepyhead’s expansion plans, D2C brand trends, and many more.

SWS: Can you tell us about Sleepyhead’s founders and the motivation for the company’s formation?

MJ: Sleepyhead was launched in 2017 to address the unmet needs of mattress shopper in India. Mattress purchases traditionally come with many pain points, such as dependency on retailers for the right information, high logistical costs resulting in high prices for the customer, poor shopping experience and no return option. 

We solved this by introducing the revolutionary ‘bed-in-a-box’ concept in India that allowed us to send a full-sized mattress roll packed into a nifty box. This gave way for massive benefits to the customer like doorstep delivery and attractive prices. 

Sleepyhead’s products are created for customers seeking design differentiation at accessible prices without compromising on quality and service. We ensure that our designs are contemporary and our service delightful. 

Before starting Sleepyhead in 2017, I was the primary shareholder and the Marketing Director of Duroflex, an industry leader in the mattress category. My knowledge of the category and understanding of the need gaps in the way India shopped for mattresses motivated me to launch Sleepyhead – a revolutionary and intelligent d2c brand, built for the digital native young India. 

SWS: Could you tell us about the products and services you provide? 

MJ: With our first product launch of ‘Bed-In-A-Box’, Sleepyhead broke all category norms and became India’s fastest-growing D2C mattress brand with 100K+ customers. Today, Sleepyhead is a home lifestyle brand focused on making everyday living fun and fabulous with its thoughtfully designed products. We also introduced the much loved 100-nights trial concept for our mattresses, this takes off the stress on the customer to choose instantly, lets them try it for long and commit to it only when it suits their comfort requirements. 

Apart from mattresses, Sleepyhead offers beds, sofas, sofa-beds, recliners and other bedding accessories like pillows, protectors and comforters. We will focus on scaling our furniture and home décor business next fiscal year. 

SWS: What can you tell us about Norwest Venture Partners and plans for expansion? 

MJ: In total, we have raised 200 Cr from two rounds of funding, initial funding from Lighthouse Ventures and growth funding from Norwest Venture Partners. We have found great partners who understand our brand vision in both Norwest Ventures and Lighthouse. We will be focusing on strengthening our furniture and home décor portfolio, bolstering production and distribution, technology, brand marketing, and investing in the right people as part of our expansion plan. 

SWS: Can you tell us about the increase in your product portfolio, which includes beds, sofas, recliners, and sofa beds? 

MJ: Our furniture range is designed to elevate the home lifestyle with stunning aesthetics and make everyday living more comfortable. Our brand’s uncompromising commitment to quality ensures that the products are made from high-quality materials and are long-lasting. The products are designed to keep customer needs at the centre and solve the multiple new-age home living requirements like work, study, leisure, relaxation and much more. Sleepyhead’s furniture range has the potential to transform any space into a comfy, trendy nook perfect for chilling. The furniture range comes in a DIY format and can be assembled without any tools with great ease.

SWS: After the United States, India is the second-largest income source in terms of mattresses—a rapidly changing scene in India your thoughts on this? 

MJ: India is seeing massive growth in the mattress category accelerated by new-age d2c brands like us. People spent a lot of time at home during the pandemic and that has had a direct impact on home furniture buying.

Mattresses went from a place to sleep to a multi-purpose space for working, lounging, sleeping and chilling. This lifestyle change made people aware of the importance of a good night’s sleep and subsequently realize the value of good quality, comfortable mattress. A D2C brand like ours gave them access to good quality mattresses at attractive prices with the added conveniences of shopping at home and doorstep delivery. We extended our customer-centricity through the 100-nights trial concept. This lets the customer feel reassured about their purchase and try the mattress for a longer duration and make a well-informed decision. 

SWS: There is a lot of room for D2C brands to grow in India. What are your thoughts on this? 

MJ:D2C brands are revolutionizing the way India shops. D2C brands are able to provide solutions that were underserved by the traditional players and uphold customer-centricity. We are also able to solve for specific customer needs and preferences and focus on customer delight. The pandemic has also accelerated the growth of e-commerce in India, giving room for more D2C brands to play. Sleepyhead leveraging the D2C play is able to focus on providing the complete shopping experience to customers and improvise with ongoing trends and requirements. 

SWS How do you explain the entire journey? From a mattress manufacturer to a fast-growing lifestyle brand?  

MJ:The success of our mattress segment inspired us to take a step forward and create comfortable, stylish and ergonomic furniture that resonates with the lifestyle of our millennial and GenZ customers. The range aims to make everyday life easy and fun through creatively designed products. Sleepyhead comes in a DIY format and can be assembled without any tools with great ease.

We are focusing on expanding our portfolio in the furniture category and planning for 2x growth, this financial year. We have many more exciting products lined up for launch and were also featured as India’s fastest-growing furniture start-up brand by INC 42 recently!

SWS: Can you explain the concept of the 100-Night Trial? 

MJ: Comfort is a very personal experience. According to studies, it takes at least 30 days for our body to get used to a mattress. In traditional mattress buying a customer barely gets to try the mattress for a minute or so as is expected to make a binding decision. This speed dating approach to mattress buying is not very reassuring for the customer.

Our unique 100 nights trial allows for customers to fully experience the mattress for 100 full nights before committing to it. If they feel that it is not for them, we understand and fully refund the money. It is a testament to the quality of our product and has helped build trust. 

SWS: What are your accomplishments and awards in the industry so far?

MJ: Our steadfast growth story is getting recognised in the industry. Inc 42 featured us as the fastest-growing furniture start-up brand and we were ranked No 7 in growth category for the d2c brand in India. We are also the preferred e-marketplace emerging unicorn for the groundbreaking and innovating technology by IWPS (Integrated WorkPlace Solutions). We have also been awarded as Gold Seller Status on Flipkart consecutively for the last three years. We strongly feel that a great brand is built by a strong team, our efforts to build a collaborative work culture have been recognized and we were awarded the Great Places to Work certification last year.

About Sleepyhead

Sleepyhead is a D2c lifestyle home décor brand made for the digital native Indian millennial & Gen Z headquartered in Bengaluru. Launched in 2017 with the unique Bed-In-A-Box concept, Sleepyhead broke all category norms and became India’s fastest-growing D2C mattress brand. Today, Sleepyhead is a home lifestyle brand focusing on making everyday living fun and fabulous with its thoughtfully designed products. The brand caters to the underserved needs of the new-age Indian customer by making great designs accessible without compromising on quality and service.

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