Koala Mattress is one of Australia’s most recent startup success stories. Founded in 2015, the eCommerce company has revolutionised the local mattress industry, bringing a modern, technology powered approach to an outdated industry. Koala sets itself apart with a digitally native offering, high degrees of service and a unique and engaging marketing approach. The company has hit a lot of milestones, including $1 million of sales in its first 80 days, heavy external investment, featuring as one of Australia’s fastest growing companies numerous times and more. It’s fair to say that founders Dany Milham and Mitch Taylor have gotten in right.
Koala is an excellent example of a business taking a simple product and differentiating itself on additional factors such as service and branding. That’s not to say Koala didn’t focus on its product, with the company engineering its own mattress foam to underpin the offering. Nonetheless, in an industry with limited space for product innovation, and countless competitors and copycats, Koala needed to do more. The company’s rapid growth and acquisition of market share provide a number of key takeaways for eCommerce stores to consider.
You don’t need to be an expert
A great lesson to be learned from the success of Koala Mattress is that you don’t need to be a guru in your product area, nor do you necessarily need eCommerce experience. In fact, coming from a different area of business can provide you with unique and helpful tools you can apply to your eCommerce store. Founder Dany Milham came from a computer science and advertising background. What this meant for Koala was that he could apply his skills to help develop the company. Two key factors in Koala’s success are its uniquely in-house developed logistics and customer management software, aided by Dany’s computer science experience, and its highly engaging and successful advertising strategy, aided by his advertising experience. Consider what you’re good at, and there will be ways to apply that to your business! Don’t be afraid of diving into an unknown area - there are so many resources out there that can help fill in the gaps.
Service, service, service
Of course focusing on your product is essential to the success of any eCommerce business, but to really set yourself apart, you must also look to that which you can offer on top of your product. This is exactly what has led Koala Mattress to its wide-reaching success. The founders took everything people didn’t like about the ways mattresses have always been sold, and solved all those problems in order to differentiate themselves from the rest of the industry. By providing a digital experience they could avoid showrooms and salespeople, while saving on overheads that they’ve passed onto their customers. They provide 4-hour tracked delivery, rather than forcing you to drive to the store and awkwardly tie the mattress to your car, or await an ambiguous 2-week delivery window. They sell one simple mattress type, at a fair price point, with a 100-day trial period. They provide fast service and go that extra step for their customers. So ask yourself what else you can offer your audience, whether that be free delivery, tracking, 24-hour customer service or a warranty.
The power of a strong brand
Finally, another key factor in Koala’s success is its strong and powerful brand image. The company has positioned itself using its advertising as a disruptor in an outdated industry, attempting to provide its customers with a genuinely superior offering to its physical competitors. Its honesty and transparency are factors that have long been missing from the traditional mattress industry, thus giving customers a brand they can trust and identify with. Another excellent branding feature is the company’s social impact, adopting a koala for every mattress sold. Koala also provides a free mattress collection for your old mattress which it then donates to those in need through a partner charity. These additional aspects further entrench its positive brand reputation, and give consumers yet another reason to consider a purchase.
Think hard about how customers will perceive your business in their minds, and what you can do to modify this to your advantage. It’s almost certain that there will be competitors offering a similar product to you, so try to differentiate yourself in every way you can.
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