Why a pillow brand of your own?
Pillows are a category where customers want advice, and where advice can be owned. A shelf of standard pillows competes on price. A pillow line with its own fitting method gives customers a reason to choose you, and to come back to you instead of to a cheaper copy.
Decision 1: which channel?
Start with where you sell, not with the product. A clinic, a webshop and a hypermarket need a different pillow story. Write down who your customer is, where they buy and how much help they get at that moment. Everything else follows from this.
Decision 2: how does your customer get the right pillow?
This is the decision most new pillow brands skip, and the one that matters most. A standard pillow has one height; bodies do not. There are three proven ways to solve that:
| Fitting method | Suits | What it asks |
|---|---|---|
| Professional fitting (three body measurements) | Clinics, sleep specialists, specialty retail | Trained staff; we provide fitting tools, training and point-of-sale materials |
| Mobile scan (PillowScan™) | E-commerce, apps, omnichannel | Integration in your webshop or store; the customer scans in about 30 seconds |
| Adjustable at home | Online and mass retail | Nothing extra in store; a short online test guides the customer |
You can also combine them. Read more on our technology page.
Decision 3: which range?
Fewer, better products sell more easily than a wide range. The range follows from the fitting method: a set of sizes for measuring and scanning, one adjustable model for at-home fitting. Then choose materials and covers. We work with premium European memory foam, our own Symbio® memory foam and washable covers, with OEKO-TEX® certified materials.
Decision 4: packaging and story
The packaging has to explain the fitting in a few seconds. That is a design task as much as a print job. We design packaging in your style and language, together with the sales story for your staff or your product page.
Decision 5: who produces it?
Choose a partner that covers the whole chain, or plan time to manage several suppliers. Design, prototyping, fit testing, production, quality control and logistics are separate steps. At UCI they happen under one roof in our 4,000 m² facility in Zevenbergen, the Netherlands. Prototypes are fit-tested in our network of more than 5,000 professionals before production starts.
What should you watch out for?
- Ownership. Agree who owns the concept, the designs and the brand. Our private label work is done under NDA: your concept stays yours.
- Claims. A pillow is a comfort product. Promising that it cures neck pain is not allowed, and it is not needed either.
- Reorders. A launch is the start. Plan how you will improve the range after the first feedback from customers.
So, should you launch your own pillow brand?
If your customers ask for advice about sleep and you want a product they cannot find elsewhere: yes. If you only need a cheap standard pillow on the shelf, a private label line is more effort than it is worth. Most of the hard work, the fitting method, the range and the production, is already done.
Discuss your pillow brand with us or read how private label with UCI works, from concept to delivery.
Thijs van der Hilst, physiotherapist, co-founder of UCI