SUMMARY
Product quality is the critical trigger that determines online mattress buying in India
$937 Mn market opportunity in the branded mattress segment by 2022
80% of the mattress purchases in India come under B2C
The popularity of direct-to-consumer (D2C) brands is growing exponentially in India as more people stay indoors for fear of contracting Covid-19 or due to state-imposed lockdowns. As stores and markets remain shut or operate for a few hours, consumers across the country have embraced online shopping for buying all their essential and and not-so-essential items. In brief, the pandemic has triggered a massive shift towards digital transactions, and D2C brands, with their digital-first presence, have leveraged that advantage to the hilt.
Another indicator that underlines the business potential of homegrown D2C consumer brands is the steady rise in funding witnessed by the startups in this space. From a mere $65 Mn in 2014, the funding amount grew more than threefold (3.4x, to be precise) to $223 Mn in 2020, a definitive proof of rising investor confidence.
While new-age startups gain traction from product-savvy, quality-conscious consumers. The mattress market in India, primarily dominated by unbranded players with traditional offerings, has undergone a similar change over the past few years, witnessing a growth surge across the D2C brands developed by disruptors. As a result, major online mattress companies such as Wakefit (+7.2x), SleepyCat (+7.5x) and Sleepyhead (+53x) have seen a significant rise in their operational revenues over the last three financial years (FY18-FY20).
Like any other market, it is essential to understand customer perception towards current brands and identify the key stimuli behind purchase decisions to catalyse growth in the D2C mattress segment. And that is what we have done in our latest release — Online Mattress Shoppers In India: Customer Perception Report 2021.
What’s Driving The Purchase Decisions Of Online Mattress Shoppers In India?
There are multiple factors at play when a consumer decides to buy a product online. Therefore, it is essential to map customer perceptions to understand the most crucial reasons behind the purchase.
We at Inc42, in collaboration with Clootrack, analysed 2,296 online product reviews posted by the mattress buyers in India to derive the key delight drivers, or the stimuli, when it comes to purchasing decisions.
“Low price sensitivity among online shoppers can be ascertained as 54% of them have an annual household income above INR 3 Lakh. Out of this, 33% have a yearly household income above INR 6 Lakh, which equals a gross monthly income of INR 50K.”
Which D2C Mattress Company Is India’s Favourite ?
Wakefit, Sleepyhead, SleepyCat, Morning Owl and Flo Mattress are the key players in the online mattress market in India. These companies were set up post-2016 and have been in the business for less than five years. But in this short tenure, they have seen staggering growth in terms of sales. For Wakefit, Sleepyhead and SleepyCat, the combined average increase in operational revenue between FY18 and FY20 was 22.5x.
To know which Indian mattress startups are winning the perception war and access crucial insights from the mattress market in India, including market size, market splits and key factors driving purchasing decisions, download the full report here.
