A Kiwi startup designed around rethinking the way we sleep is getting international recognition.
Do Not Disturb Sleep Company, an Auckland manufacturer of premium sleep products, has secured a multi-million-dollar distribution, sales, and marketing agreement in the US.
Founder Chris Larcombe says the brand's grown and evolved over the years, and this is great news.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Now I've got some good news for you. As in
a good news story in New Zealand business Do Not Disturb.
Sleep Company has secured a multimillion dollar deal in the US.
And what's better is that they're using wool in their products.
And with me right now is the chief dream officer
and the founder, Chris Larcom. Chrismus pronounced your name.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
It sounds pretty posh.
Speaker 1 (00:20):
How do you pronounce it?
Speaker 2 (00:21):
Lacum lacom, Yes, really fast, lacum lacam.
Speaker 1 (00:25):
Okay, Well, I feel like it's a name. We need
to get used to it and learn because you guys
might do some amazing things here. Well, you haven't named
the partner that you've signed with.
Speaker 2 (00:32):
Why is that it's very fresh and the lawyers have
only just given me the okay to do that. But
his his name is Ezra. It's based in Chicago, and
he's just come out of a twelve year building a
mattress making business that was doing thirty million or so
a year, and he wanted to get into other products
and he fell in love with his old wool, our
(00:52):
friends Wise Wool, who we buy our will from. Greatest
wall you can use for sleep products? Yeah, introduced us.
It was only about six weeks ago, and the war
started about the same time, but it didn't stop this
from happening. And on Good Friday, which is now I
call Eff and Good Friday, he signed Brilliant now.
Speaker 1 (01:12):
So he's making the mattresses. So what you're making is
arguably complimentary. Right, you've got the pillows, You've got the
sleep masks. What's in that sleep miss, is it?
Speaker 2 (01:21):
Yeah, he's a new product, the sleep Miss, with some
botanical oils in there to help knock you out as
you put your head on your pillow. But actually he's
finished with his mattresses. He actually decided to leave his
family business and he wanted to start something different, go
down a new path, but use all his experience with
online Amazon marketplace, running his own Shopify site, which is
(01:42):
what I built for ourselves. So he's got all the experience,
he's got the connections, and he's just values alignment, ethics,
environmentally responsible. Everything has to be the story back to
the farm. So he just fell in love with everything
we're doing. And I couldn't ask for a better partner.
Speaker 1 (01:56):
To Chris, I'm just going to get you to stop
banging your hands on the table because it's causing.
Speaker 2 (02:00):
Its excited to be.
Speaker 1 (02:01):
Yeah, I'm sorry, it's so annoying for you. I'm sorry.
It's the Mayyor of Auckland does it all the time.
I have to tell them as well because it's just
causing earthquakes in our heads. What does it mean this partnership?
What does it mean for your products?
Speaker 2 (02:15):
For the business. So we are the maker of everything
that you'll see on doing not Destir a website and
we're based in Avendar. We're a commercial work room. We're
old school, twenty five sewing machines, overlock as a giant
Swiss quilty machine, big cutting tables, no technology in the business, yeah,
just very very capable skilled machinists cutters.
Speaker 1 (02:34):
Is that point of difference that is good for you?
Or does that seek you?
Speaker 2 (02:37):
Behind? Our greatest point of difference why we get to
I don't like the way to control, but it's our product.
We design them, we evolve them, we make them. We
care more than anyone else would ever do to make
those products, the love of the soul that goes into them.
And you actually feel that, I believe you do. And
we get the feedback from our customers that there's something
different about them. Even Ezra in Chicago said, never seen anything.
Speaker 1 (03:00):
Like So would people pay a premium for things being
made in the old way?
Speaker 2 (03:06):
Yes, and also made from New Zealand, which is really
important for his story. He could have chosen to have
our products made in the US, It could have chosen
to have them made in Asia, but he wanted them
made as close to the source of the materials, but
also by the best people that can make them.
Speaker 1 (03:21):
So now you've made a point because of course you're
using New Zealand wool, which is fantastic because we're all
looking for ways to use New Zealand wool to keep
this thing going. But you make the point that if
we're not using New Zealand wall, the stuff that we
are sleeping is full of all these little bits of plastic.
Speaker 2 (03:35):
Are they microplastics, synthetics, any sort of chemicals they add
to it to say, hey, we're a cooling pillow, cooling
gowls and things like that. Will does that by nature,
it's inherently one of its magical properties. And if you
don't mess with the wool, which is wise, well, don't.
What you've got in front of your heather is the
color of the wall that came off in the sheep.
There's no vegetable, which.
Speaker 1 (03:54):
Is like it's like the stuff in cartoons is like
perfect wall.
Speaker 2 (03:57):
Well yeah, but they haven't had to mess with it
chemical treatment, and the farmers are getting a really good
return on that wall, so they want to keep farming.
They don't want to plant pine trees and ruin the environment.
So we just need to grow the demand for it,
which we have been not in New Zealand so much.
It's from the US. We had to look outside in
New Zeland.
Speaker 1 (04:13):
We need the money. We don't have the money for
this kind of thing. How big do you reckon you
can make this company?
Speaker 2 (04:18):
I like to look at Icebreaker. Icebreakers started what fifteen
year journey and they sold one Marino T shirt was
their first product, and then they sold the company I
think for two hundred and eighty eight million. Yeah, right,
So I think we can get there. I think everyone
in the world sleeps. About a third of the people
in America are on pills or some sort of therapy
treatment for help with sleep. So we just need a
small fraction of that market, which we're going to get
(04:41):
and then I believe, who knows, five years to ten years.
Need to set an impossible goal, but we should get
to thirty forty million. That was a sale coming through
the website. So whoever, are you serious?
Speaker 1 (04:51):
Is that to sound of somebody just spending money with you?
Speaker 2 (04:53):
Yeah? Thank you? How good is that to the police?
I love the show.
Speaker 1 (04:56):
Okay, we do not disturb dot co, dot and zeros.
Speaker 2 (05:00):
That's my mum. She's so good. She keeps buying saving you.
I love that from her. It's distracted.
Speaker 1 (05:08):
All right, what was your goal five to ten years?
Speaker 2 (05:11):
I want to say thirty million turn over?
Speaker 1 (05:13):
Okay, go you why not?
Speaker 2 (05:14):
You don't want to know what is now? It has
been for the last five years, but it's been horrible,
it is.
Speaker 1 (05:19):
And this is the thing, right is that What we
forget is that in order to be the next ice
breaker you have to go through years of earning less
than the minimum wage and really bucking with up.
Speaker 2 (05:26):
Yeah, that's correct, That is correct. We've been there, done that.
Now we're on the next path and we get to
grow the business, double the team in the next year.
There's a lot of manufacturing businesses that have shut down
and there are people knocking on our doors looking for work.
So now we can actually open those doors.
Speaker 1 (05:40):
Good stuff. Well listen, Chris, beast of luck with it,
and we will wait to see when the announcement comes
of who it is that you've signed with. Chris, give
me your surname again, Like them, Like them?
Speaker 2 (05:49):
There you go.
Speaker 1 (05:50):
Chris Larkham a Chief dream officer and founder of the
Do Not Disturb Sleep Company, which is to sign a
massive US partnership. Keep an eye on that for more
from Hither Duplessy Allen Drive. Listen to news talks it'd
be from four pm weekdays, or follow the podcast on
iHeartRadio
Now I've got some good news for you. As in
a good news story in New Zealand business Do Not Disturb.
Sleep Company has secured a multimillion dollar deal in the US.
And what's better is that they're using wool in their products.
And with me right now is the chief dream officer
and the founder, Chris Larcom. Chrismus pronounced your name.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
It sounds pretty posh.
Speaker 1 (00:20):
How do you pronounce it?
Speaker 2 (00:21):
Lacum lacom, Yes, really fast, lacum lacam.
Speaker 1 (00:25):
Okay, Well, I feel like it's a name. We need
to get used to it and learn because you guys
might do some amazing things here. Well, you haven't named
the partner that you've signed with.
Speaker 2 (00:32):
Why is that it's very fresh and the lawyers have
only just given me the okay to do that. But
his his name is Ezra. It's based in Chicago, and
he's just come out of a twelve year building a
mattress making business that was doing thirty million or so
a year, and he wanted to get into other products
and he fell in love with his old wool, our
(00:52):
friends Wise Wool, who we buy our will from. Greatest
wall you can use for sleep products? Yeah, introduced us.
It was only about six weeks ago, and the war
started about the same time, but it didn't stop this
from happening. And on Good Friday, which is now I
call Eff and Good Friday, he signed Brilliant now.
Speaker 1 (01:12):
So he's making the mattresses. So what you're making is
arguably complimentary. Right, you've got the pillows, You've got the
sleep masks. What's in that sleep miss, is it?
Speaker 2 (01:21):
Yeah, he's a new product, the sleep Miss, with some
botanical oils in there to help knock you out as
you put your head on your pillow. But actually he's
finished with his mattresses. He actually decided to leave his
family business and he wanted to start something different, go
down a new path, but use all his experience with
online Amazon marketplace, running his own Shopify site, which is
(01:42):
what I built for ourselves. So he's got all the experience,
he's got the connections, and he's just values alignment, ethics,
environmentally responsible. Everything has to be the story back to
the farm. So he just fell in love with everything
we're doing. And I couldn't ask for a better partner.
Speaker 1 (01:56):
To Chris, I'm just going to get you to stop
banging your hands on the table because it's causing.
Speaker 2 (02:00):
Its excited to be.
Speaker 1 (02:01):
Yeah, I'm sorry, it's so annoying for you. I'm sorry.
It's the Mayyor of Auckland does it all the time.
I have to tell them as well because it's just
causing earthquakes in our heads. What does it mean this partnership?
What does it mean for your products?
Speaker 2 (02:15):
For the business. So we are the maker of everything
that you'll see on doing not Destir a website and
we're based in Avendar. We're a commercial work room. We're
old school, twenty five sewing machines, overlock as a giant
Swiss quilty machine, big cutting tables, no technology in the business, yeah,
just very very capable skilled machinists cutters.
Speaker 1 (02:34):
Is that point of difference that is good for you?
Or does that seek you?
Speaker 2 (02:37):
Behind? Our greatest point of difference why we get to
I don't like the way to control, but it's our product.
We design them, we evolve them, we make them. We
care more than anyone else would ever do to make
those products, the love of the soul that goes into them.
And you actually feel that, I believe you do. And
we get the feedback from our customers that there's something
different about them. Even Ezra in Chicago said, never seen anything.
Speaker 1 (03:00):
Like So would people pay a premium for things being
made in the old way?
Speaker 2 (03:06):
Yes, and also made from New Zealand, which is really
important for his story. He could have chosen to have
our products made in the US, It could have chosen
to have them made in Asia, but he wanted them
made as close to the source of the materials, but
also by the best people that can make them.
Speaker 1 (03:21):
So now you've made a point because of course you're
using New Zealand wool, which is fantastic because we're all
looking for ways to use New Zealand wool to keep
this thing going. But you make the point that if
we're not using New Zealand wall, the stuff that we
are sleeping is full of all these little bits of plastic.
Speaker 2 (03:35):
Are they microplastics, synthetics, any sort of chemicals they add
to it to say, hey, we're a cooling pillow, cooling
gowls and things like that. Will does that by nature,
it's inherently one of its magical properties. And if you
don't mess with the wool, which is wise, well, don't.
What you've got in front of your heather is the
color of the wall that came off in the sheep.
There's no vegetable, which.
Speaker 1 (03:54):
Is like it's like the stuff in cartoons is like
perfect wall.
Speaker 2 (03:57):
Well yeah, but they haven't had to mess with it
chemical treatment, and the farmers are getting a really good
return on that wall, so they want to keep farming.
They don't want to plant pine trees and ruin the environment.
So we just need to grow the demand for it,
which we have been not in New Zealand so much.
It's from the US. We had to look outside in
New Zeland.
Speaker 1 (04:13):
We need the money. We don't have the money for
this kind of thing. How big do you reckon you
can make this company?
Speaker 2 (04:18):
I like to look at Icebreaker. Icebreakers started what fifteen
year journey and they sold one Marino T shirt was
their first product, and then they sold the company I
think for two hundred and eighty eight million. Yeah, right,
So I think we can get there. I think everyone
in the world sleeps. About a third of the people
in America are on pills or some sort of therapy
treatment for help with sleep. So we just need a
small fraction of that market, which we're going to get
(04:41):
and then I believe, who knows, five years to ten years.
Need to set an impossible goal, but we should get
to thirty forty million. That was a sale coming through
the website. So whoever, are you serious?
Speaker 1 (04:51):
Is that to sound of somebody just spending money with you?
Speaker 2 (04:53):
Yeah? Thank you? How good is that to the police?
I love the show.
Speaker 1 (04:56):
Okay, we do not disturb dot co, dot and zeros.
Speaker 2 (05:00):
That's my mum. She's so good. She keeps buying saving you.
I love that from her. It's distracted.
Speaker 1 (05:08):
All right, what was your goal five to ten years?
Speaker 2 (05:11):
I want to say thirty million turn over?
Speaker 1 (05:13):
Okay, go you why not?
Speaker 2 (05:14):
You don't want to know what is now? It has
been for the last five years, but it's been horrible,
it is.
Speaker 1 (05:19):
And this is the thing, right is that What we
forget is that in order to be the next ice
breaker you have to go through years of earning less
than the minimum wage and really bucking with up.
Speaker 2 (05:26):
Yeah, that's correct, That is correct. We've been there, done that.
Now we're on the next path and we get to
grow the business, double the team in the next year.
There's a lot of manufacturing businesses that have shut down
and there are people knocking on our doors looking for work.
So now we can actually open those doors.
Speaker 1 (05:40):
Good stuff. Well listen, Chris, beast of luck with it,
and we will wait to see when the announcement comes
of who it is that you've signed with. Chris, give
me your surname again, Like them, Like them?
Speaker 2 (05:49):
There you go.
Speaker 1 (05:50):
Chris Larkham a Chief dream officer and founder of the
Do Not Disturb Sleep Company, which is to sign a
massive US partnership. Keep an eye on that for more
from Hither Duplessy Allen Drive. Listen to news talks it'd
be from four pm weekdays, or follow the podcast on
iHeartRadio
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