BENEATH THE SHEETS

A GOOD NIGHT’S SLEEP GOES A LONG WAY TOWARDS MENTAL WELLNESS, AND AH BEARD CEO TONY PEARSON BELIEVES THE OFT OVERLOOKED MATTRESS IS THE ESSENTIAL INGREDIENT.

- MICHAEL WAYNE

NAME: Tony Pearson

COMPANY: AH Beard

POSITION: CEO

LOCATION: Sydney, Australia

One of the smartest investments anyone can make in their health is a good night’s sleep. The quality of that sleep, however, is often equivalent to the quality of your sleeping apparatus. We may be a far cry from the straw-stuffed palliasses of old, but that doesn’t mean we’re resting easier: a 2020 Royal Philips study found that just 45 per cent of Australians are satisfied with their sleep.

According to AH Beard CEO Tony Pearson, it’s simply a matter of education. “It’s not a house or a car, but a mattress is still a significant outlay,” he says. “Alongside nutrition and exercise, sleep is the third pillar of health, so people need to be able to make better informed decisions about the kind of mattress they purchase.”

And therein lies the problem. When it comes to selecting bedroom elements, the humble mattress doesn’t elicit the same kind of excitement reserved for quilt covers and scented candles. Rather, it ranks somewhere between the impractically giant pillow that’s merely there for show and the mattress protector.

“I believe the mattress is one of the least known commodities, yet it’s probable that 99 per cent of the planet sleeps on one,” Tony shares. “Likewise, while we’re probably the second largest manufacturer and distributor in the country, we’re probably one of the least known.”