The National Bed Federation (NBF) crowned its eight 2024 Bed Industry Awards winners on Tuesday 24th September at the Bed Show gala dinner in Telford, where Strictly Come Dancing star Anton Du Beke announced the winners across bed manufacturing, component supplying and retailing at the annual ceremony.
An independent panel of judges selected the winners from a shortlist of finalists comprising NBF members and supporting bed retailers.
This year’s winners in the NBF member awards were Airmesh Air Luxury by Silentnight Beds for Bed Product of the Year; ValueRest by Nestor Springs for Component Product of the Year; Harrison Spinks for Bed Manufacturer of the Year; and Handy for Supplier of the Year.
The winners in the retail awards were: DFS for National Bed Retailer of the Year; MattressNextDay for Online Bed Retailer of the Year; The Bed Post for Large NBF Retail Champion of the Year; and Dreamland Bedding Centre for Small NBF Retail Champion of the Year.
Tean Dallaway, NBF president, comments: “The industry-renowned NBF awards are a valued opportunity to recognise the stand-out companies and individuals in the UK and Irish bed sector. Congratulations to all the worthy winners and finalists and those who put themselves forward to be judged.”
Linthorpe Beds was highly commended in the Small NBF Retail Champion of the Year category, as was Land of Beds in the Online Bed Retailer category.
Competition was fierce, but Harrison Spinks was crowned Bed Manufacturer of the Year. The industry’s most vertically integrated brand goes from strength to strength, says the NBF – judges commended its financial performance, rebrands and retelling of the Harrison Spinks story, all with a forensic focus on sustainability earning the company its eighth Queen’s/King’s award.
With exclusive sustainable ranges for John Lewis and Dreams, the company also introduced a new Bed Tailor Collection. Additionally, its revised export strategy has resulted in significant growth in North America.
The finalists were Dreams Manufacturing, Hypnos and Sealy UK.
Handy triumphed in the Supplier of the Year category. Judges commended its “commitment to ingenious product innovation, clear understanding of its customers’ needs and razor-sharp focus on customer satisfaction, in the knowledge that a slip-up will bring the whole process grinding to a halt".
Handy provides added value services to its clients through recent innovations including an all-wool mattress tape edge and a unique bed bug detection and protection system. Additionally, it has invested in its warehousing and machinery and demonstrated commendable staff development and retention.
The finalists were The Vita Group and Wolf Components.
Jonathan Hindle, who helped to judge the Bed Manufacturer and Supplier of the Year awards, says: “The in-depth appraisal required to select a winner from amongst a strong field of competing companies, all of whom are coping admirably with the change-management challenges required to stay in the game, is an inspiration!
"The industry should be proud to have so many world-beating companies in the UK, leading the way in financial performance, innovation, new technologies, sustainable practices and investing in their employee and customer experience.”
The judges for both company awards were Brian Ahern (The Furniture Makers’ Company), David Fitzsimons (Oakdene Hollins and the European Manufacturing Council) and Jonathan Hindle (chairman of the British Furniture Confederation, and MD and president of KI Europe).
The coveted Bed Product of the Year was awarded to Silentnight Beds for its Airmesh Air Luxury mattress. The judges found this mattress to be "really comfortable" and said it ticked all the boxes. Based on extensive consumer research, the manufacturer knows what people want and has set out to deliver it at a realistic price point. Among a number of entries prioritising temperature regulation, this truly had the science and messaging to back it up, said the judges, who described the PoS as "beautiful, flexible, and tactile”, promising to bring the range to life in-store according to the retailer's preferences.
The finalists were Sealy UK for its Elevate UltraLux Anniversary mattress and Millbrook Beds for its Opulent Pillow Top 7000.
The judges were Steve Adams (Mattress Online), Sue Davies (Sue Davies Design Solutions), James Dunne (Prestige Beds), Paul Farley (Furniture News) and Joanna Fielding (AIS).
Polish spring manufacturer Nestor Springs won this year’s Component Product of the Year award for its ValueRest spring. The judges praised the company for creating a luxury component at an affordable price that meets customer needs. The innovative spring design features an increased spring diameter, which was developed based on customer feedback and is now a patented product. This new spring configuration uses -30% less steel, resulting in a significant impact on the overall product. It provides comfort while being cost-effective and highly functional.
The finalists were Boyteks for its BioCool mattress ticking, Carpenter for its Podz Foam Springs and Handy for its Narrow Woven Wool Tape Edge, with John Cotton Nonwovens earning highly commended for its Earthkind mattress insulator pad.
The judges were Natalie Armstrong (Sealy UK), Danny Blackmore (Silentnight) and David Morris (Sleepeezee).
In the retail categories, DFS clinched National Bed Retailer of the Year for the first time. Despite industry challenges, its beds and mattress category continues to grow impressively, with NBF members contributing the vast majority of revenue.
The company's successes included improved online performance, expanded NBF-member ranges in-store and robust sustainability initiatives, while holding its suppliers and subcontractors accountable. The retailer also has a dedicated NBF Retail Champion webpage to educate customers about the trade association and the importance of buying NBF-approved product.
The finalists were Bensons for Beds, Dreams and Furniture Village.
MattressNextDay was crowned Online Bed Retailer of the Year for the second time. The online retailer achieved a remarkable YoY increase in turnover and profit while prioritising exceptional customer experience by continually improving website performance and design and investing in its active social media programme. It demonstrated strong NBF brand support, a solid sustainability programme and impressive corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives for employees and the local community.
The finalists were Mattress Online and Simba Sleep, with Land of Beds earning highly commended.
Dreamland Bedding Centre, an NBF Retail Champion that stocks predominantly NBF-approved brands, clinched Small NBF Retail Champion of the Year. The Midlands-based retailer provides strong online and offline support for the NBF and its member brands, including bespoke PoS and a robust marketing and advertising programme. Solid financial markers, a zero-to-landfill policy and impressive staff training and development, including age-friendly business training and apprenticeships, made Dreamland the worthy winner.
The finalists were Prestige Beds and The M6 Bed Warehouse, with Linthorpe Beds earning Highly Commended.
The Bed Post scooped the Large NBF Retail Champion of the Year award for the first time. The South Eastern retailer reported healthy sales and profit uplifts across all its stores, with stand-out website performance and high customer satisfaction. It strongly supports NBF brands and has invested in staff training, PoS and innovative marketing strategies. The judges commended its social responsibility through fair bed disposal and support for local causes.
Sussex Beds was named as runner-up.
The four retailer awards were judged by Jarrod Bird (Interiors Monthly), Bernard Eaton (Greenwood Retail) and Dan Squires (Big Furniture Group).
Further details on all the finalists and winners are available to read online on the Bed Show website, and Furniture News will be going into detail about each winner in the official Bed Industry Awards supplement in November's issue.
