India's overall mattress market has grown at a CAGR of above 11 percent over the last five years. The rise in income levels and health consciousness and growth in the real estate and hospitality sectors are major factors that accelerated the growth of the Indian mattress industry. A visible shift has been observed in the consumers’ perspective, where the main focus is on the comfort and functionality of the product.

The demand for a good quality mattress has seen an uptick in India as well as people are becoming aware of its benefits. Today, consumers of every age group have realised the importance of taking 8 hours of sleep and the impact of a comfortable mattress on their body, mind, and soul.

“There has been a definite shift in terms of consumer awareness and willingness to spend on sleep solutions, not just in the metros, but across cities and small towns in India. As awareness increased, people’s willingness to do in-depth research, compare prices, and make informed decisions while buying mattresses and other sleep solutions have also grown significantly. Another contributing factor is the consolidation of fragmented pieces of the sleep economy like mattresses, beds, furniture, bed linen, ambient product, sleep tech, etc. under one umbrella,” Ankit Garg, CEO & Co-Founder, Wakefit.co, says.

Beating Tier 1 and metro cities, Tier 2 markets have become the top contributors and Tier 3 cities are also gaining momentum.

Changing Consumer Preferences

Covid-19 led lockdown has turned consumers hygiene conscious which has led to the rise in the below trends:

Booming Online Market: Pandemic made people wary of stepping out of their homes. This led to a boom in the e-commerce industry and brands are developing new strategies to help consumers buy mattresses from the comfort of their homes.

Anti-Bacterial Products: A comfortable, hygienic, and sound sleep has never been more important than it is today. And with a more health-focused approach towards lifestyle, people resorted to anti-bacterial products for everything.

Demand For Innovative Products: At a time when health is given utmost importance, people have started demanding innovative products such as Orthopedic Mattress, Dual Mattress, etc.

Consumers today are more comfortable making big purchases over the internet, which has created an opportunity for online players to transform the mattress buying experience. By eliminating middlemen, online companies have been able to offer products at 40-50 percent cheaper rates than market incumbents.

Pritesh Talwar, CEO of Livpure, stated, “The demand for better products and quality has increased in consumers. There is a shift in customer preferences with about 30 percent of the Indian consumers opting for customized mattresses against only five percent abroad. We have a tradition of getting beds made from carpenters and a similar trend can be seen in the mattress industry as well. The mattress material and size are being customized according to customers’ preferences and customer needs.”

Innovations in the Mattress Segment

In the post-COVID scenario, many D2C brands have brought meaningful innovations in the sleep and home solutions space and built deep customer relationships across multiple channels.

Adopting Technological Tools

Sound and healthy sleep have become the topmost priority for consumers.  And for that, the companies are using new technologies and innovating sleep solutions. The firms are adopting new technological tools to provide better customer service. Whether it is an integrated customer relationship management (CRM) system or the use of technology in making their operations and logistics seamless, the focus is to enhance the lives of customers at every touchpoint during the purchase and post-purchase stage.

Balasubramanyam SV, Founder, Durfi Retail Pvt. Ltd, said, “We manufacture zero filler pure foams, we need better innovative tech and machinery to manufacture good foam, all our foams come with a bunch of great properties like breathable, no odor, zero sagging, long-lasting and perfect choice for Indian weathers. Also, we recently introduced compressing and roll pack mattresses, developing infrastructure for compressing innerspring mattresses as well. We use, individually inner Pocketed Spring Technology, by creating individual coils and encasing each one in the fabric, the mattress provides great comfort and eliminated motion transfer.”

The Future Ahead

The mattress industry is poised to cross Rs 14,000 crore by 2021 and is largely an unorganised sector, predominantly occupied by local players. Over the last five years, there have been promising innovations in the industry. With the growing popularity of online players, there have been encouraging efforts to promote quality sleep among Indians, while getting the sector more organized.

The changing market dynamics due to the Covid-19 pandemic and increased e-commerce adoption are expected to further drive the growth of the sleep industry. Enhanced sleep experience, with a sharp focus on customisation, will be the key to lasting success. A shift to the online mattress market has made the brands focus on customization, quality products, and refining sleep experience for Indian consumers. The Indian mattress industry is most likely to emerge as one of the leading industries in the future.

“The dynamic and promising mattress industry of India has an undying scope due to its vast usability and dependency in allied sectors like wellness, hospitality, and healthcare amongst others. Consumer confidence is on the rise driven by growing brand awareness, easier access to products, online trends, and fast-changing lifestyles. The lockdown gave birth to trends like WFH and get-togethers at home, basically, our entire lifestyle adjusted indoors which made people realize the importance of good sleep. This has also increased demand for good quality, comfort, and durable mattresses as people have become more health & hygiene conscious. While it is a competitive space, we do foresee growth in the Indian Mattress industry,” Gautam concludes.