Member Article

Leesa Sleep kicks off with Northwest Football sponsorship deal

Leesa Sleep, the leading direct-to-consumer online luxury mattress retailer, announced its headline title sponsorship of the Northwest Football Awards. The sponsorship deal will see the Awards – which celebrate football excellence both on and off the field, across the male and women’s leagues, from non-league through to Premier League – renamed as the Leesa Northwest Football Awards 2017.

Leesa launched in the US in January 2015 and in the UK in July 2015. The Company became the fasted growing e-retailer of any kind in North America in its first year. On the back of rapid and profitable growth in the UK, the company is increasing its commitment to the UK and Europe with a recent decision to double the size of its office and move to a prestigious central Manchester location. Leesa’s ties to the North West region run deep.

Co-founder and CEO, David Wolfe, who grew up in Manchester and moved to the US more than two decades ago, said, “As a lifelong Manchester City fan, I am delighted to connect our name with the very best in Northwest Sport. There is a very close relationship between sleep and human performance, and it is never more apparent than in elite sports. We have built our company by creating amazing mattresses while also giving back to the community and I am delighted that the NWFA rewards not just human sporting performance, but also commitment to the community.”

As a B-Corp, Leesa is recognised as being a force for good in the world through business, something which wasn’t lost on Forbes when the prestigious publication recently named Leesa as one of 25 companies in its 2017 list of “The Next Billion-Dollar Startups.”

However, Leesa measures it success as much by its impact on the world as by it financial performance. On both scorecards, the company’s record is remarkable. With sales that grew from £21.5m in its first year (2015) to over £65m in 2016, Leesa expects to reach £110m in this its 3rd year. At the same time, through its One-Ten programme, Leesa has donated over 22,000 mattresses worldwide and 10 million nights of sleep to charities serving people seeking refuge from homelessness, domestic risk and human trafficking.

David Wolfe added, “When my sister, Laura Wolfe, told me that the naming rights were available, I jumped at the opportunity. I’ve seen the awards grow from afar with admiration and this year is going to be extra-special. It’s a crazy time for Leesa as I will be at Leesa partner’s, the Washington Redskins, game the day before, and I have to get back for a Leesa event in NYC with Leesa Ambassador, Michael Phelps, the day after, but I’m flying over just for the evening to present the Lifetime Achievement Award because this year’s recipient is a true Northwest Legend and the whole event is going to be spectacular this year.”

In fact, the title sponsorship with the Northwest Football Awards comes as the prestigious event prepares to mark its tenth anniversary year – with this year’s awards taking place at The Point, Emirates Old Trafford on Monday, 13th November, hosted by the BBC’s Dan Walker.

Laura Wolfe, managing director of Wolfesport and the Leesa Northwest Football Awards said: “We are really delighted to announce Leesa Sleep as our title sponsor; a business that has a strong reputation globally and is doing truly amazing work to support sport performance, whilst having social impact at its core. I’m proud that my brother and I have been able to work together to make this happen.

“The Northwest Football Awards turns 10 this year and has grown in influence year-on-year, due to our inclusive approach to the game. With the backing of our new sponsors and partners, we aim to continue going from strength to strength and celebrate the clubs, people and organisations in football truly leading the way and setting an example for the rest of the UK, across both the men’s and women’s games.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Paul Jones .