[News Space=Reporter seungwon lee] Sleep specialty brand Simmons (CEO Ahn Jeong-ho) has fully demonstrated its status as the number one brand in the bedding industry by posting its best performance ever despite the domestic economic downturn.

Simmons Beds recorded its highest sales ever last year with sales of 329.5 billion won, a 5% increase from the previous year. Last year, operating profit was 52.7 billion won, a 65% increase from the previous year.

Simmons' operating profit margin last year was 16%, up 6 percentage points (p) from the previous year. The reason for the increase in operating profit margin is that the company strengthened its fundamentals by improving its constitution through the operation of an emergency management system last year.

Here, through ESG management that actively empathizes with society, the company has demonstrated its quality as an industry-leading brand and has not only improved performance but also firmly established itself as a ‘national bed.’

First, the factors contributing to the increase in sales include ▲unrivaled dominance in the premium mattress market and ▲successful establishment of a multi-brand strategy led by the high-end vegan mattress N32.

Simmons has further solidified its leading position in the premium mattress market, which is said to have no rivals. It continues to dominate the premium market worth over 3 million won, with a 90% market share in major 5-star luxury hotels and a 20% annual growth rate for its ultra-premium lineup, Beautyrest Black.

At the same time, the company secured growth momentum for the future by targeting the premium foam mattress market with the high-end vegan mattress N32 that pursues a multi-brand strategy and entering the pet supplies market by launching a pet mattress that was the first in the industry to obtain the '3 major pet safety certifications'.

Last year, R&D (research and development) expenses recorded 1.25 billion won. This includes the development of a 'vanadium pocket spring' that can be used virtually permanently, the launch of a vegan mattress that minimizes environmental impact by using biodegradable materials, and the launch of a pet mattress that is produced using the same raw materials and methods as human beds.

In addition, it has been loved by consumers by demonstrating its quality as the number one brand in the bedding industry through ESG management that actively empathizes with society.

Last January, Simmons disclosed a patent for a method of manufacturing a flame-retardant mattress that does not burn easily for the public good. In major advanced countries such as the US, Canada, and the UK, it is legislated that only flame-retardant mattresses that prevent the phenomenon of “flash over” in which the entire room is engulfed in flames in the event of a fire are distributed, thereby securing time for occupants to escape. Simmons fully disclosed the related patents so that anyone can use them, believing that if other bed brands also manufacture and distribute flame-retardant mattresses, it would ultimately be good for society and consumers.

Then, in July, during the Timon unsettled payment scandal that sent shockwaves throughout society, in order to prevent the damage from being passed on to consumers, the company took the loss and completed product delivery even when it was certain that it would incur approximately 1.4 billion won in unpaid balances from Timon, thereby keeping its promise to consumers.

In addition, the industry's first ESG bed project, the 'Beauty Rest 1925' project, was carried out, in which 5% of the consumer price for each product sold was donated to the Samsung Seoul Hospital Pediatrics and Adolescent Center remodeling fund, and over 3,000 units were sold and over 600 million won in donations was raised.

This project is considered a representative ESG branding case that shows 'how' rather than 'how much' money a company makes by informing the public of the reality of children and adolescents in Korea and inducing donations through consumer spending. The cumulative donations delivered to children and adolescent patients at Samsung Seoul Hospital from 2020, when COVID-19 was at its peak, to this year amounted to 1.8 billion won. They are also continuing various social contribution activities such as 'Farmer's Market' that supports farmers in the local community of Icheon, Gyeonggi-do, where Simmons' headquarters is located.

As a result of this corporate social responsibility, donations last year amounted to 1.48 billion won.

Simmons CEO Ahn Jung-ho said, “I would like to thank the members who achieved results despite the difficult conditions. In order to repay the unwavering support of consumers, we have worked even harder on technological innovation, which is the essence of a company, and have also tried to fulfill our social responsibility.” He added, “This year in particular is expected to be a particularly difficult year due to the unstable international situation and inflation, so we have decided to freeze product prices.”