We have been handcrafting beds since 1905 and the fundamentals of our approach haven’t changed. Our aim has always been to make beds that stand the test of time. When we started in 1905, we committed to making beds using the same time-honoured methods. We knew it was never about producing the most beds, but about making the best.
In a world stressed out by speed and waste, our Bedworks is a place of focus and calm; where skilled artisans use craftsmanship and the finest natural materials to create extraordinary beds that last a lifetime. We go against the throw-away culture that has become a mainstay in furniture. Instead, we offer repairs for natural wear and tear, and reupholster headboards when fabrics fade or get damaged. We avoid plastic and toxic chemicals in the construction of our beds. At the end of the bed’s life, our steel springs are recycled and the natural fillings we use – wool, horsetail, cotton, jute and wood biodegrade within a few years. This is in contrast to foam, man-made latex and memory foam (polyurethane) which all take several decades to decompose.
Our working methods are different from other bed manufacturers. There’s no production line, instead, we use craft because it achieves the best result. We train apprentices to ensure bed-making skills and knowledge have a future. We make all our beds to order, so we don’t have excess stock to sell, and we use only the materials we need in order to minimise waste.
Although the foundations of sustainable practices are there, we recognise we can do more to limit our impact on the world and its resources. We still use some plastic for packaging before transportation and a few of our raw materials come from far flung places. Occasionally, we air freight a bed to a customer if it needs to be at its destination more quickly than travel by sea allows. Small and big changes can make a difference and this is why we are working on our packaging, our working practices and our sourcing strategy to do better. We realise that some of these changes will take time, but we’ve been here for 115 years making the best beds we can, so we’re in it for the long haul.
