“Beds by Design” – Introducing a Design Trade Program

Bill Hammer, president of Shifman Mattress Co., and Alison Minella, marketing director, describe the company’s design trade program and its complementary designer collection, Inspired. (Filmed at the October 2022 High Point Market.)

Transcript

Waynette Goodson
Welcome to this edition of Beds by Design. I have the good fortune of being here with Shifman, Bill Hammer and Alison Minella We’re going to talk a little bit today about their designer program. So, Bill, why don’t you kick us off with just why designers have become important to the bedding industry now?

Bill Hammer
Yeah, I think it’s important to have a designer collection. We call it the Inspired Collection. It’s to serve the design community. There are a lot of consumers who don’t shop at retail stores. And they shop through their designer. And so we’ve recently made products available for that community.

Waynette Goodson
Wonderful. I love that news. It’s so wonderful to bring this design energy to the bedding community. So why don’t you talk a little bit about more about that program?

Alison Minella
So it’s a four-bed collection and we really wanted it to be a seamless extension of the interior designer’s vision. We have it purposely as a four-bed collection because we wanted to simplify the process. It can be incredibly overwhelming when shopping for mattresses. And so why make it complicated? Let’s make it so that there’s an easy-to-navigate comfort, feel for each particular mattress.

So that way, when an interior designer is looking for a mattress for their customer, they can simply say, what feel are you looking for? We also focus on the health and wellness of consumers. So it’s very important for us to put a high content of natural materials and we focus on really attaining that luxury feel at a reasonable price point.

Waynette Goodson
Right. So many important points here. You’ve got the health and wellness, you’ve got the great price points, you’ve got the style. Looking toward the horizon and the way designers will interact with Shifman, can you tell us any secrets perhaps that might be coming up in 2023 or 2024? Do you have a goal with the program? Can you speak to that?

Bill Hammer
Yeah, well, our secret is providing true value, and that’s really the difference with Shifman is that our craftsmanship and features are really there to benefit the consumer. And so the secret to our success is staying true to craftsmanship and quality and offering the benefit of health and wellness.

Waynette Goodson
Wonderful. Well, thank you so much for your time today. I can’t wait to see this program as it continues as we continue on this designer journey together. Thank you so much for your time and keep tuning in for other editions of Beds By Design.