This month we’re asking retailers: Do you have any investment plans for the year ahead?

World of Beds

Yes, we’re excited about our investment plans for the coming year. Our focus remains firmly on three key areas that we believe create the most value: our people, our products, and our customer experience. We’re committed to ongoing staff development, continuing to bring innovative sleep solutions to our customers, and ensuring our showrooms provide the perfect environment for customers to find their ideal mattress. These strategic investments reflect our dedication to maintaining our position as a trusted local sleep retailer.

Choice Furniture Superstore

When it comes to investment strategy for 2025, one area stands out as particularly crucial: Digital Content Creation. While traditional investment channels remain important, we have a significant focus on developing high-quality content for social media and product videos. This shift reflects the evolving landscape of customer engagement and brand building. The key is viewing content creation not as a marketing cost, but as an investment. In today’s digital-first marketplace, this approach has become less of an option and more of a necessity for sustainable business growth.

Elphicks

For 2025, E. W. Elphick & Sons LTD are investing in renewable energy, this is due to the predictability of costs with using renewable energy. Unlike fossil fuels, which are subject to price fluctuations, renewable energy sources offer a more stable pricing. This can also have a positive impact on our employee satisfaction and retention. We have found while recruiting that more people are now considering a company’s environmental impact when choosing where they would like to work. To start the year off we are currently having 35 solar panels installed. We are already looking at what our next green energy steps will be once the solar panels have been installed.

Home World – Mattress & Bed Centres

In 2025 we are investing more in to our range, we are elevating it higher to get more bigger ticket sales. Thankfully in 2024 we managed to start dealing with two new suppliers that fit nicely with us and our business plan. It’s working well. We are also investing the most we have ever done in our colleagues; they have a large pay rise due in April along with several other new benefits & incentives. We made the decision to slightly lower staff numbers but give industry busting packages. They have to work a bit harder now but they are very happy. Also, we can now attract new good people whenever the times comes. Elevating colleagues too.  Apart from that we are actually going to develop a large part of the first floor into residential flats, it is currently not used at all. 

Toons

We are redeveloping a new department in-store, which sees us create a larger gift shop area by knocking through into an old storage area. In the same space we will be introducing a new area selling bedding, ready mades, towels etc. We are also investing in a new roof for our older part of the building, which covers our whole flooring department and soft furnishings area. This is a large area and should cost us around £30,000. But it’s important for us as a quality and trusted furnishings store to keep our showroom in the best possible condition.

The Bed Post

Yes, following a very positive sales return during 2024 The Bed Post will be investing during 2025. We continually work on the presentation of all our shops. Our second largest shop at Petts Wood has just been granted a new lease and will see a programme of investment throughout 2025 to enhance its overall look and appearance. Due to the great year we enjoyed in 2024, The Bed Post will be acquiring a new van to cope with the additional deliveries we now have to undertake. The marketing of our business can be a challenge, as it is for us all with the different medias all fluctuating in success. We have found that the direct mailing of The Bed Post leaflets continues to deliver good results and because of this we will be expanding our distribution with the target of attracting a wider audience.

Fairway Furniture

Having made a major seven-figure investment in our flagship store in 2024, this year will certainly be quieter. We have some small projects already scheduled for delivery, but these are primarily targeted to deliver operational savings, such as the final stage implementation of our renewable energy generation project. The October budget and its significant impact on the fixed cost base means many, like us, will no doubt be delaying further investment or looking at reducing the costs of essential projects that cannot be deferred.

Mattressman

As Mattressman continues to expand, we are investing in TV advertising. Having just gone live you can spot our professional advert on a variety of channels as well as other areas we intend to invest in this year such as YouTube and Social Media advertising. Our new production complements our rebrand perfectly and will help up on the journey to becoming a household name.

Leekes

Yes, we’re investing in the final phase of a multimillion-pound refurbishment at our flagship store in Llantrisant, just outside Cardiff, starting Spring 2025. This 9–12-month project will introduce upgraded conservatory displays, expanded clothing and footwear collections, and a relocated ground-floor restaurant with a dog-friendly outdoor space. These enhancements are an addition to the £4 million refurbishment that took place in phases 1&2 of this project and reflects our commitment to creating a modern, inspiring shopping destination for our customers. We’re excited to share updates throughout the year and look forward to welcoming everyone to the transformed store.

Harrison & Brown

We have had to invest in some new heating this year as our system was so old it was on the way out but luckily there was a 50% grant available for that. Due to the ongoing increases in what seems to be everything at the moment, any other investment we were planning for this year has sadly gone out of the window.

Dreamland Bedding Centre

Our primary focus for investment in the forthcoming year remains centred on our workforce, who constitute the most valuable asset within the organisation. Staff development is integral to our ethos, and we are proud to support team members engaged in courses ranging from Level 2 to Level 7, ensuring a pipeline of professional growth and expertise across all levels of the business. In terms of tangible assets, although the year is still in its infancy, we have already undertaken significant improvements. Notably, we have revamped four displays, including those for Enchanted House, Shire, Adjustabeds, and Breasley. Plans are firmly in place to transform the Millbrook and Sleepeezee sections imminently, ensuring our showroom reflects the calibre and sophistication of the brands we represent. Moreover, we are actively exploring avenues to enhance the business’s physical frontage, aiming to elevate its visual appeal and align it with the premium nature of our product portfolio. While our digital presence is currently limited to a brochure-style website, we recognise the importance of online visibility and will be allocating resources towards bolstering our SEO strategy in the coming months. However, we have no immediate intentions of transitioning to an omnichannel retail model. Finally, we remain committed to investing time and effort into community engagement. Our ongoing collaborations with local schools and community initiatives are set to expand further. Notably, we aspire to contribute to the development of the town into a Business Improvement District (BID), which we believe will significantly enhance the local economy and community cohesion.

Mattress Online

This coming year we’ll be investing in ongoing staff training and development, the opening of a new store, and our expertise offering to customers both online and in-store.