Earlier this year, sofa-in-a-box pioneer Swyft announced its expansion into Germany, fuelled by a £10m investment from new owner Sleep Brands. Here, CEO Keiran Hewkin talks new markets, categories and stockist benefits …
Swyft first brought its easy-to-assemble upholstery designs to market in 2019, and has made great strides since. Last year, the UK brand, via its Polish manufacturing base, fulfilled over 30,000 orders and recorded +13% YoY revenue growth – and the injection of fresh funds from its new owner (which also owns bed brand Dormeo UK) has enabled it to optimise operations, improve delivery speed, and enhance inventory management, while unlocking a new market.
“We started Swyft to inspire people to create beautiful homes, and we believe furniture should be effortless, timeless, and a true reflection of who you are,” says Keiran. “Our move into Germany is a natural extension of our growth strategy, and we’re excited to introduce our products to a new audience who values design and convenience. By Q4 2025, we expect Germany to contribute 15% of our total order intake.”
For starters, what’s the scale of your UK operation?
Our UK operations are relatively small – our warehousing is in Poland, and our German native team are remote. In a very ‘2025’ way of doing things, our first native German hire lives in Greece!
What exactly makes Germany a good fit for the brand?
Germany is a natural next step for Swyft’s expansion due to its proximity to our factory in Poland, making logistics more efficient. It’s also a significant market with strong demand for high-quality, well-designed furniture, and a preference for seamless customer experiences – values that align perfectly with what Swyft stands for.
How does the demand for modular sofas in Germany compare to the UK?
It’s significantly higher than in the UK, particularly for modern designs like our Model 03 and 06, which have been well received by German consumers. This is because flats in Germany tend to be a little larger, more modern, and often feature open-plan layouts, which lend themselves to modular sofas that provide more flexibility compared to the typical UK layout.
What else does that fresh investment mean for Swyft this year?
This investment has allowed us to build a better, more robust inventory proposition and expand into new categories quickly, without losing the essential Swyft look.
How benefits will existing UK stockists see?
We’re increasing order volumes for non-upholstered goods to serve European styles, and these products will also be available to UK customers.
You’ve said you expect to see SKU growth of nearly +100% this year – what product categories or innovations can customers expect?
We’ve just launched two occasional chairs, and a new sofabed is on the way. We’ve also introduced our second table and chairs, with bedroom and additional dining collections planned for later in the year.
What prompted these additions?
We received a lot of requests for occasional chairs, but honestly, we always wanted to be a brand that stood for more than just sofas. We just wanted to make sure we had perfected the design before expanding. And the proof is in the pudding – our overall furniture collection now outsells our Model 01 (the original sofa-in-a-box).
What excites you most about Swyft’s future?
For me, it’s always about the product. The most exciting part of Swyft’s future is what’s next – the pieces we haven’t launched yet. This won’t change, even if we sell products to every country in the world.
