“Beds by Design” | Meet Camilla Franklin of Creative

Go behind the scenes in this video with Camilla Franklin, director of marketing and design for Creative. Here she talks about why it’s important for designers to step out from behind the scenes and become more visible in the bedding industry.

Transcript

Waynette Goodson
It’s Waynette Goodson. I’m your managing editor of BedTimes and Sleep Savvy Magazines. And I have here with me Camilla Franklin. She is the vice president of marketing and design for Creative. So, Camilla, talk a bit about your role at Creative and what it means to be a designer at Creative.

Camilla Franklin
It’s very exciting. I’ve just been there for a year. We’ve made huge inroads, some really strong company. We have a great background in manufacturing. I’ve been doing a big reset for the company for this market. It’s been wonderful being here to see the fruits of our labor come to life on beds, So it’s very exciting to have that happen in a year.

So my role there is running the design department, we have designers from all over the world. We’re based in North Carolina and have a designer in Rome. That’s my main role. After that, I’ve been marketing, working on the brands, researching and developing, developing new fabrications, bringing in new yarns and finishes, and researching the market.

Waynette Goodson
So you wear many different hats. But the main action is, would you say, you all are actually designing the fabrics for the bed? We are. Now, I understand that in the bedding industry, a lot of times, designers are sort of more backstage, sort of behind the scenes.

Camilla Franklin
Historically, yes.

Waynette Goodson
So why do you think now you’re in the limelight? Why do you think that designers should step forward a bit and be a bit more in the mainstream?

Camilla Franklin
They have to be. It has to change and evolve. And it is. When I started in ’96, the designers were very much in the back room. They didn’t really have a lot of contact with the customers. Working in a bubble isn’t easy. So you really have to get out and know your customer, what they want to say to their customer, what you want the bed to do, and how does it need to perform.

What characteristics does it need to cool? Is it about health? What’s the story you’re trying to tell?

Waynette Goodson
Right. So you designers can actually help tell the story to help sell that bed. Let’s look forward to 2023 and maybe tell me a couple of trends that are here to stay that are going to totally work in 2023 and maybe some that are just kind of bubbling up now.

Camilla Franklin
Right. So starting with color, which is the most important thing because that’s the emotional response that you key into without even realizing it. So your color has to be right. Right now, we’re in the blues and the grays, and we’re kind of soup to nuts with that. White is still present, but the grays and the blues are very strong.

But I would say going forward; I’m expecting to see the warmer tones are going to come in. We’re going to go away from the cool, cooler blues and grays, and we’re going to move into the kind of brushed bronzes, soft golds. Everybody wants comfort and calmness, and serenity in their home. So those naturally warmer colors will help impart that.

Waynette Goodson
These guys make it look so easy. I’m telling you, you must have professional designers who can put all that magic together for you. So we are so thankful to have you here today. Camilla, thank you. And we’ll be coming to you again.

Camilla Franklin
With more fashion.