Sleep and Healing Care Brand 'Birex' Successfully Settles
Massage Chair Sales Increase Fivefold Compared to Last Year
Continued Investment in Birex This Year
Coway has achieved remarkable success in its mattress and massage chair product lines just one year after launching its sleep and healing care brand, ‘BEREX’. While its existing home appliance product lines such as water purifiers and humidifiers remain strong, the company is now recognized for successfully establishing itself in the mattress and massage chair markets with BEREX. Building on this foundation, Coway plans to expand its investment in BEREX this year following record-breaking performance last year, aiming to firmly establish it as a new growth engine.
On the 5th, Coway announced that new products launched under the BEREX brand have consecutively recorded high sales. Mattress sales grew by more than 10% compared to the previous year, while massage chair sales increased more than fivefold. In particular, the massage chair model ‘Mine’ was so popular that its initial stock sold out immediately upon release, and the ‘Pebble Chair’ exceeded its sales target by more than double, receiving great acclaim. BEREX’s success is also reflected in the company’s performance. According to FnGuide, Coway’s estimated annual sales last year reached KRW 3.9849 trillion. Approaching KRW 4 trillion in sales is a first in Coway’s history. Annual operating profit is also expected to increase by 9% year-on-year to KRW 738.3 billion.
Coway believes that its strategy of integrating mattresses and massage chairs under the BEREX brand in December 2022 and releasing only innovative products that differentiate it from competitors has resonated well in the market. For mattresses, instead of springs, Coway adopted a new method using an air injection system called ‘SlipCell’. The BEREX smart mattress allows users to adjust the firmness by individually controlling the amount of air injected into 80 SlipCells embedded in a queen-size mattress. These SlipCells are highly durable and maintain a like-new condition without sagging even after long-term use. Users can also check real-time body pressure information and control firmness via a mobile application. Additionally, innovative technologies such as an ‘automatic body pressure dispersion system’ that detects and analyzes body pressure to effectively distribute it, and a ‘relax mode’ that promotes deep sleep, have been applied.
The massage chairs have enhanced competitiveness by expanding options beyond the conventional uniform designs to include compact massage chairs, furniture-style massage chairs, and bed-type massage devices. The furniture-style massage chairs feature designs that blend well with any space while offering powerful massage functions. The bed-type massage devices have penetrated the market with a 3D massage system and space-efficient design.
This year, Coway plans to increase investment in BEREX and accelerate market penetration with differentiated technology and a more diverse lineup. First, the ‘BEREX Reclining Massage Bed’, which won an innovation award at CES 2024, will be launched domestically within the year as a flagship BEREX product to intensively target the market. The company also plans to expand offline stores to continuously grow the BEREX brand’s presence and improve customer accessibility. Seo Jang-won, CEO of Coway, stated, "We will focus our capabilities on nurturing BEREX, the sleep and healing care brand that has successfully established itself with innovative products such as mattresses, Pebble Chairs, and massage beds, as a new growth engine."
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