Case study: Cottonsafe Natural Mattress
Why they are remarkable: they found a genuine vegan niche that was hard for others to copy.
In business, we use the word ‘niche’ to describe a specialised marketplace. For instance, an interest that only a small percentage of the population have can be described as a niche. Even though it’s growing hugely, veganism itself can still be described as a niche. As the movement and interest in veganism moves towards the mainstream, companies are finding even more specialised niches within veganism in which they can still find success. But you have to be the first. You have to be the best. And there has to be a real barrier to other people copying you.
If you are thinking of launching a vegan business then mattresses aren’t the obvious place to start. But if you truly understand someone’s vegan journey then you will know that after you change what you eat, the next step is to change what you wear (from clothes to cosmetics), and then what you sit and lie on. There are many ways that animal-derived products can make their way into home furnishings, not just in terms of fillings like duck down but also in the glues that are used. Even the anti-oxidising agents that metal zips and fasteners are coated with (to prevent against rusting) can contain animal ingredients.
Cottonsafe Natural Mattresses are handcrafted in Devon and are the only mattress manufacturer you will find registered with The Vegan Society’s Vegan Trademark. With this, Cottonsafe are not just saying that they have confidence that the product is vegan, but they care so much they have got The Vegan Society to give their stamp of approval also. I know that they are very successful because I spoke to them on behalf of someone who was interested in becoming a sales agent, to which they responded with a very kind message saying that they already had all the demand they needed! They have gone beyond a product being vegan, because again that’s something anyone can copy, but have cemented themselves as the market leaders in ethical mattresses by knowing what else their customers want. As an ethical consumer we don’t just want a mattress that swaps out animal-derived components with ones that are full of chemicals instead. As Cottonsafe point out, there can be up to 4 kilos of fire retardant chemicals soaked within a foam double bed mattress, so they have designed a product which is also natural and chemical free.
What makes them remarkable is that they have carved out their own niche within a niche, and you won’t see a product like theirs from anyone else any time soon.
