Sleep Changes Life... The Challenge of Project Sleep

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Jonghwa] "Changing the quality of sleep changes the quality of life."

This is not a doctor's claim. It is the usual philosophy of Lee Sangmi, CEO of three furniture and lifestyle brands?Project Sleep, Pyeongsosenghwal, and Lassom. Most people do not recognize the discomforts they experience in daily life. According to CEO Lee, the root cause of these discomforts is generally "sleep." She stated, "Project Sleep was started to provide comfortable sleep to people whose lives have become uncomfortable due to sleep-related discomfort that takes up one-third of their day, thereby improving their quality of life."

Project Sleep was selected as a business operator in 2017 for the 14 billion KRW-scale "Seoul Youth Housing Innovation Project," with the slogan of empathizing with sleep as a basic social right. It received 1 billion KRW in research and development funding from the Seoul Metropolitan Government to develop products to be supplied to youth and social housing. After surveying 3,000 citizens and providing a 700-day test bed to 250 people, Project Sleep launched a high-quality "furniture solution" based on the results, supplying it to 300 households. Following positive reviews, the products were also sold on the market.

Project Sleep’s mattresses and toppers have shown a consumer satisfaction rate of 97%, based on reviews and surveys from 10,000 customers. As affordable yet high-quality products consistently satisfied consumers, the Seoul Metropolitan Government made additional investments in Project Sleep, and by last year, products had been supplied to over 800 youth and social housing units.

CEO Lee said, "Anyone can buy cheaply, but it is difficult to find products that are both affordable and satisfying. Project Sleep aimed to create such products and has been recognized for it," adding, "Our goal is to help young people live more comfortably and with greater satisfaction even in small spaces."

As more consumers began seeking complementary products for mattresses, the lifestyle brand Pyeongsosenghwal was launched last February. Pyeongsosenghwal focuses on products not available from Project Sleep, such as pillows, toppers, pads, blankets, pajamas, and sleep masks. Within just four months of its launch, it produced hit products like the Ice Cream Pillow and Cool Towel.

Thanks to this, sales have been on the rise: 3.5 billion KRW in 2019, 5 billion KRW last year, and expected to surpass 10 billion KRW this year. Among the three brands?Project Sleep, Pyeongsosenghwal, and the existing women’s furniture specialty brand Lassom?Project Sleep is expanding its consumer touchpoints with the goal of going public in three years.

Recently, mattress rentals have also begun. In partnership with credit card companies, a service was launched allowing some customers to rent mattresses for "0 KRW per month." With increasing demand for outdoor activity products such as car camping and camping, a car camping topper developed in collaboration with Tesla is also set to be released soon.

Project Sleep and Pyeongsosenghwal apply innovative materials such as cooling fabrics used in sportswear to their sleep products, ensuring excellent quality. They use verified raw materials, intermediates, and finished products, making them safe from various harmful substances.

CEO Lee emphasized, "I hope more people can live more comfortably and better thanks to Project Sleep and Pyeongsosenghwal products," adding, "We will not forget the value of Project Sleep in partnership with the Seoul Metropolitan Government and will continue to operate a sincere business."