ⓒ 3boon1

Today, we’ll introduce 3boon1, a promising startup that will reach 9 million US dollars in sales just one year after its foundation. Let’s meet with Jeon Ju-hun(전주훈), the head of the company. 

3boon1 is a mattress manufacturer. We mostly produce foam mattresses, and we’ll release other products aimed at improving sleep experience in the next year. After graduation, I worked at a grain trading company. Then I started my own business by creating an app that coordinated and supplied housecleaners. But that didn’t work out well. After that failed, I had a hard time sleeping. I realized how important it is to sleep soundly, and so I set up a mattress manufacturing company. 

Mr. Jeon studied microbiology at Seoul National University. After graduation, he worked at Daewoo International. He later created a house-cleaning platform app as he saw potential in the platform business. But he had difficulty in managing the rather complex profit model. He gave up on his business two years after he started it. While suffering from insomnia, he realized the importance of mattresses. 

So he spent time at a mattress factory to learn more about them. And on January 1, 2017, he set up 3boon1, which means “one-third” in Korean. The company name contains his hope and determination to improve one’s sleep, which comprises one-third of a person’s day and therefore one-third of one’s entire life. 

ⓒ 3boon1

Our foam mattress does not have any springs in it, allowing it to perfectly respond to the contours of the body. It has a layer of five different memory foams, and the structure makes people feel like they’re floating on water when they lie down on it. It also removes possible pain on pressure points on parts of the body, like the shoulders and the pelvis, even when people lie on their side. That’s why they feel comfortable and in good spirits the next morning. 

There are basically three types of mattresses to choose from: spring, latex, and foam. Innerspring-based mattresses are prevalent here in Korea, while more and more people in Europe and the U.S. are using foam mattresses. 

Made of polyurethane, the body-conforming foam mattress distributes the body weight evenly regardless of the position of the body to support the users’ body and help them have a deep sleep. But one shortcoming was the smell of polyurethane. The company used heat to solve this problem. A special foam type called Cool developed by the company was placed on top to allow enough ventilation. 

Also, the firm used a unique heat treatment method, rather than industrial adhesives, to put different materials together. As a result, the company earned the CertiPUR label, a label given by the European Union to goods that use safe materials in an environmentally-friendly product line. 3boon1 is said to have made some 1,000 test products before releasing the final product.

Typically, furniture makers do not conduct beta testing of new products. But on a trial basis, we provided our products to people who had difficulty sleeping. We continued to improve our goods, on the assumption that a product would prove successful in the market if more than 50 percent of users express willingness to buy it within a month. After the trials, the users were eager to give detailed feedback, which were fully reflected in our products. The last test product was provided to 60 people. After using it for one month, 70 percent of them said they would buy it. Confident in the success of our product, we launched it at last. 

After numerous consumer tests with different combinations of materials, the company finally released a mattress with five different memory foam types laid on top of another in July last year. Foam on the first layer provides decent ventilation, and hard foam on the second layer is for preventing the mattress from sagging. Foam on the third layer helps support the natural curve of the body and the softest foam is placed on the fourth layer. 

The company differentiated itself from existing mattress producers, in terms of materials, the manufacturing process, and the sales method. 

In general, mattresses are available in offline showrooms. But it costs money to rent a place and hire salespeople. From the customers’ point of view, we thought it was an unnecessary bubble. So we mostly sell our products online. But we do provide an offline experience zone. Customers can experience our products there at low prices. In addition, our mattresses are compressed for box packaging and delivery. When taken out of the box, they should unfold automatically and properly. So we did a lot of research on foam with strong durability. 

The company streamlined a distribution structure to sell the products online and promote them on social media. When customers open the box, the compressed mattress naturally enlarges to full size – no professional installation needed. Through this efficient method, the company can reduce transportation costs by 10 percent. Based on new innovations in production and distribution, 3boon1 sells its products at a one-third of the price of premium alternatives. 

ⓒ 3boon1

We’ve sold more than 1,000 mattresses this year, representing a hundred-fold increase from earlier stages. You can find a lot of customer reviews online, which I think were a driving force behind our remarkable growth. I suppose our company is one of the top three players in the domestic foam mattress market, in terms of the number of products sold. 

China and Southeast Asia are showing interest in our brand, with hotels in those regions making many inquiries. But for now, we’re focusing more on the domestic market. Though we are hoping to look at the Russian and South American markets, which are relatively less competitive than the U.S.

The company expects to post 9 million dollars in sales by year’s end. It is developing other products as well, including pillows and bed frames, tailored to foam mattresses. The firm has changed the landscape of the local mattress industry in a very short period of time. Attention turns to another positive change that the company will bring about in the future.