COVER STORY


lets us be a lot more responsive to our cus- tomers; it lets us be more accountable to our own production. It also lets us innovate. We have more flexibility in the product design and development that we’re doing.” This manufacturing flexibility not only spurs innovation, it ensures greater quality control. Diamond identifies and addresses potential issues more quickly than companies who rely on a longer supply chain. At the same time, in-house manufacturing also helps keep costs down and safeguards the company against much of the uncertainty surrounding component suppliers right now. While Pennington is excited about moving the company forward, he’s been careful about preserving its long history as well. “We don’t want to neglect what got us here,” he says. “That’s why we’re not letting go of the other alternative strategies of OEM. In fact, we’re enhancing our OEM capabilities, we’re en- hancing our other capabilities even with the independent retail markets that we have now.” In addition to the new products, Diamond is also rolling out a wellness-based program to further support its new brand platform. This includes an online training system called Diamond University, which focuses on helping RSA’s understand the importance of sleep and what Diamond sees as the foundation of wellness through its B.E.D.S Framework. B.E.D.S. stands for Breathe, Exercise, Diet and Sleep, which Pennington identifies as the “four keys to wellness.” The program features video series and online courses that are designed to help RSAs provide educational and actionable value to their customers. “We need to educate people on a deep- er level so they can really engage with con- sumers,” Pennington explains. “When you can deliver greater value with information that is personally relevant and valuable, all of a sud- den you have something really powerful.” “We work with each retailer independently to figure out what their needs are and then


we build solutions around that,” he contin- ues. “We help them with Point-Of-Sale, we create their Experience Centers, we help them with all the demos. You can have a great product, but it doesn’t matter how great your product is if it doesn’t sell. I want to give retailers good margins, but they also need to be able to sell the product. All the retail support that we provide, that’s what makes the units turn.”


Bolstering its products through thoughtful in-store programs has always been a key pil- lar of the Diamond brand. But, more broadly, the company has defined itself over the years through a dedicated list of five core princi- ples. “When you look at the purpose of the company, the foundation is our ICARE core values,” Pennington explains. “ICARE stands for Integrity, Customer Service, Accountabil- ity, Responsiveness and Engagement. That’s the base of the pyramid; upon which we de- fine our vision and our purpose. For us, that’s at the heart of everything we do.” In order to meet and maintain these stan- dards, the company regularly evaluates itself. “How do you service the customer better? How do you provide better quality service and better-quality products? How do you engage people and inspire them more? How do you engage the RSAs? How do you get them ex- cited about something?” From comprehensive training to motivational speeches and tactile demonstrations, Diamond is excited to pro- mote its meaningful new evolution—one that thoughtfully brings its retail partners with it. “Whatever the solution is that the retailer is looking for, we have that—but we also have a lot more behind it,” Pennington explains. “The value that we’re bringing to a retailer is when they’re ready and interested, we have much more to give. Engaging with Diamond means engaging with a culture and a com- pany that can help your whole organization be better.” Visit diamondmattress.com


“When you can deliver greater value with information that is personally relevant and valuable, all of a sudden you have something really powerful.”


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