The Raunak Group is a name synonymous with quality mattresses in the Indian Sleep industry. Based out of Kolkata, this 25-year old family-run venture is run by three generations of family members at the helm of the organisation. As their Executive Director, Mr. Raunak Agarwal says, “We’ve been witnessing an increased clutter in the consumer’s mind while taking decisions pertaining to purchase of sleep products like never before. For an organisation which has been known for integrated manufacturing for over two decades now, we feel the mantra has suddenly become – if you can’t convince them, let’s confuse them!”
Hence, they have chosen to rope in Bollywood celebrity, Rajesh Sharma in a campaign where the slogan which they clearly seek to embed into the customer mind states “Sab Bakwaas Hatao, Sleepfresh Ghar Lao!” A Bollywood celebrity of national fame and having featured in blockbuster Hindi cinema like Bajrangi Bhaijaan, MS Dhoni, Toilet,- Ek Prem Katha, Dream Girl and OTT hits like Paatal Lok, is an attempt by the brand to strike a chord with the Indian masses and asking them to trust the brand which has been servicing the Indian market through its four integrated manufacturing facilities with its various brands like Sleepfresh, Raunak, Dreamfresh, Purofoam and Tuffpuff compared to various unorganised and local alternatives which crop up every day.
After obtaining his degree in Family-Managed Businesses from SP Jain, Mumbai, Mr. Agarwal who is the third generation of the business feels that in the times to come with the markets opening up to all and the technology-driven era enabling businesses to offer their products beyond their traditional geographies, the customer mind is being deeply misled and confused in the sleep industry with all kinds of false perceptions by the content available on the internet. The goal of brands like Sleepfresh is to bring a fresh breeze of clarity and reach their customers through a massive network building programme which not only includes a growing brick and mortar presence but also a digital initiative making their products available across all major e-commerce platforms like Amazon, Flipkart, Pepperfry, Bajaj EMI Store and growing each day other than their fully e-commerce enabled own website.
Sleepfresh has been largely a regional player since its inception since the founders always believed that in a business like mattress making, moving products beyond a distance of more than 400-500 km from their plant location is not possible, however, with the changing supply chain eco-system in the country, this way of working is changing and the brand which is now available at offline dealer network spanning more than 1500 partners today across 18-states in India. They are now targeting to reach a comprehensive Pan-India network over the next five years.
India’s mattress industry has been largely unorganised with few branded players like Kurlon, Sleepwell and Duroflex who control only 30 percent of the market, and that leaves a large vacuum and opportunity for the regional brands like Sleepfresh which have been cementing their place in their geographies and perfecting the art of manufacturing the product over the years to reach the ever-demanding Indian consumer across the country.
The Journey from using Cotton to Branded Mattresses
Our founder, Shri L.N Agarwal started his journey in the mattress industry back in the 1960s when he used to work for an organisation which was one of the pioneers in making coir mattresses in India called Rilaxon. The brand was introduced in the Indian market at a similar time when Kurlon had also brought the technology from Germany for making Rubberised Coir mattresses.
In the 60+ years of his industry experience, he has envisioned the customer migrate his choice from traditional cotton-based hand-stitched products to fine machine-made branded mattresses with a large variety and combinations to choose from. He named his initial brand- RAUNAK after his grandson with the clear vision stating that his product should bring happiness to each user’s life and sleep equally, as that is what RAUNAK means in Hindi language.
With the years, the brand which has seen various celebrities endorse the product like the world-renowned Bengali superstar – Soumitra Chatterjee or Ollywood film celebrity – Babushaan Mohanty. Today as he proudly presides over the group as Non-Executive Chairman, he says that his technology is second to none in the Indian industry and his products match up to the ones of all major brands. A devoted man, the only mantra which he has been pushing all his team members to chant and follow is “Let’s Create Fresh Sleep For all together.”
Source: BUSINESS WIRE INDIA
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