Buying 'Kkuljam'... Modern People Opening Wallets for a Good Night's Sleep

Increase in Insomnia Patients... Growth of the Sleep Industry
Popularity of Premium Beds Up↑

Photo by Pixabay.

[Asia Economy Reporter Heo Midam] Recently, as the number of modern people suffering from insomnia and sleep disorders has increased, many consumers are opening their wallets generously for a good night's sleep. They are willing to spend boldly if they judge that investing in high-priced products such as premium beds is worth it for quality sleep. Accordingly, the 'sleeponomics' market is also showing growth. Sleeponomics is a compound word of sleep and economics, meaning 'consumption for quality sleep.'

Recently, products that help achieve high-quality sleep have been gaining attention. According to Market Kurly, sales of sleep-related products from January to July this year increased about 7.5 times compared to the same period last year. Sales of 'pillow mist,' which is sprayed on pillows for better sleep, and 'body pillows,' which are hugged while sleeping, increased threefold and fourfold, respectively. On Gmarket, in the past month, sales of bedding and topper (mattress) sets grew by 152%, and mood lights and sleep lights saw a 48% increase compared to the same period last year.

This is related to the increase in modern people experiencing sleep disorders. According to the Health Insurance Review & Assessment Service, the number of patients visiting hospitals for insomnia rose from 560,000 in 2017 to over 680,000 in 2021, increasing every year. Adding patients suffering from narcolepsy, sleep apnea, and other conditions that disrupt normal sleep, the number is expected to be much higher.

Kang Sohee (28, pseudonym), a second-year office worker, is also suffering from chronic fatigue due to insomnia. She said, "For a few months, maybe due to work stress, I felt frustrated because I couldn't fall asleep even when I closed my eyes. Not sleeping well and going to work made me operate in a daze, making company life difficult. I thought I needed to change my surroundings for better sleep, so I bought new bedding like pillows and aroma candles that are said to help with sleep."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

As more people boldly invest in quality sleep, premium beds are also gaining popularity. There is a perception that the quality of sleep is directly linked to the quality of the mattress, leading consumers to choose high-priced mattresses.

Ace Bed's premium line 'Ace Heritz' saw sales grow about 42% in the first quarter of this year compared to the same period last year. Especially, the 'Ace Heritz Black' line, despite being a high-priced product costing around 20 million KRW, saw a 50% increase in first-quarter sales compared to the previous year. Simmons also revealed that last year, sales of premium mattresses priced over 7 million KRW accounted for 66% of total sales.

With the growth of the sleep industry, various sectors are continuously launching sleep-related products. The food industry is introducing food and beverages that can help with quality sleep, and the distribution industry has opened dedicated sections that gather sleep-related items all in one place.

In particular, the IT industry is introducing 'sleep tech' products that incorporate technology to measure sleep quality. Examples include wireless earphones that aid sleep, smart pillows that monitor and analyze movements during sleep, and sleep lights that analyze individual sleep patterns.

Meanwhile, the domestic sleep market is expected to grow further. According to the Korea Sleep Industry Association, the size of the domestic sleep market, which was only about 480 billion KRW in 2011, expanded to 3 trillion KRW last year. Among this, the mattress market size was 1.8 trillion KRW, and it is expected to grow to 2 trillion KRW this year.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.