HANTS expands offering to burgeoning middle class

Thursday, 29 March 2012 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

By Joshua Nicholas

Hubert N Anthony and Sons Ltd. (HANTS) recently launched five models of POLYFLEX all-foam mattresses last week: the Serra, Yarra, Prova, Bella and Chiba.

HANTS, which started as a family company in 1981, is now in the process of what HANTS Chairman Ajantha Anthony described as, “slowly but surely making our presence felt island wide.”

The introduction of the new POLYFLEX range, alongside their existing spring mattresses, will allow HANTS to cater fully to a burgeoning market, and comes alongside efforts to appoint Island-wide distributors and the introduction of HANTS showrooms in Colombo and major out stations.

According to HANTS Head of Marketing Roma Anthony, the middle class accounts for 60% of Sri Lanka’s mattress market. Furthermore, while the overwhelming majority of the market share is controlled by foam mattresses, due to exposure to hotels at home and abroad, there is a trend within Sri Lanka of the middle class moving towards the use of spring mattresses she said. As HANTS wishes to “cover all the sections,” as stated by HANTS Marketing Manager Udaya Palhawadana, both sections of the market must be addressed.

The new range of POLYFLEX mattresses has therefore been introduced to fulfil what Roma Anthony calls “a need for good quality layered mattresses as part of our product portfolio through which we can cater to all sections of our target market with new features of added comfort, competitive pricing, durability, and safety.”

According to Roma Anthony, the new mattresses will be priced to ensure customers get value for money, and a quality product that will last well over the stipulated guarantee period.

The new POLYFLEX mattresses will be marketed alongside HANTS five existing spring mattress types, which range from basic to plush. Anthony stated that rather than expanding the range of spring mattresses, HANTS will concentrate on value adding by including more features to the existing range. Together, the two mattress ranges will allow HANTS to cater to a burgeoning middle class that accounts for 60% of the mattress market.

POLYFLEX mattresses are currently distributed through a network of Hants showrooms and distributors in Colombo, Kandy, Galle, Kurunegala, and Kalutara.