Bed company at centre of glass fibre concerns fails

Paula Penfold of

By Paula Penfold of

A mattress company once described as "quickly disrupting" a "clunky and inflexible industry" has come unstuck. After its launch in 2019 Winkl received glowing publicity amid "exponential growth". It had a feel-good business strategy including giving back to the community by sponsoring Kiwi chicks. But in the wake of complaints about the mattresses shedding glass fibres, the good times appear to be over.

On social media, Winkl's pages said, "Let's face it. The mattress industry is broken. We've made it our mission to fix it!"

And by any measure, Winkl was on a trajectory for success.

The "bed-in-a-box" company set up in 2019 to "give the big boys a run for their money" sold thousands of mattresses, bringing in millions in revenue, it said.

But earlier this year, concerns emerged over the product's safety.

Stuff reported one family's lengthy contamination cleanup of glass fibre particles that they said escaped from their mattress, which they blame for a variety of health problems.

Other customers also came to Stuff with concerns about glass fibres which they suspected had leached from their Winkl mattresses.

Winkl founder, director and sole shareholder Simon Sheterline denied his product was responsible for the family's health issues, and told Stuff it was safe.

Last week Winkl went into liquidation. Companies Office documents show it was by "special resolution of shareholders", in other words, voluntary liquidation.

Liquidator Ecovis KGA did not answer any of Stuff's questions, saying in a statement, "The liquidators are not at liberty to disclose any matters pertaining to the liquidation to any party who is not a shareholder or creditor of the company."

Its first report will be lodged with the Registrar of Companies "in due course".

Then, and now

Winkl was initially incorporated as Sheterline Van Der Boon Mattress Limited in February 2019 and became Winkl the following year.

Its mattresses were designed in New Zealand and made in China.

A profile in M2 Magazine observed that Sheterline, an ex-KPMG business strategist, had "put everything on the line" to get the company going but that Winkl was "quickly disrupting" the mattress sector while giving back to the community.

One of those ways of giving back, he told Stuff in 2021, was through the Winkl Kiwi Project: Winkl would donate a Kiwi chick sponsorship to every buyer of a Winkl mattress.

According to several Winkl posts on Instagram, the partnership was with the National Kiwi Hatchery Aotearoa.

Also in 2021, Sheterline told KPMG's alumni magazine that the idea for Winkl came about when he was listening to a podcast about a US mattress company. "They'd achieved a $100 million run rate in the first few years.

"The other thing that resonated with me was that I'd recently had a less-than-ideal mattress shopping experience myself. We figured... we could probably change the industry a bit and give the big boys a run for their money."

He told the magazine that the idea behind Winkl was that customers could buy a quality mattress online at a competitive price, get fast delivery to their door, and a money-back guarantee.

And customers appeared to like the concept: Sheterline said Winkl was on track for more than $3m of sales in its first full financial year.

By June this year, he told Stuff Winkl had sold 10,000 units of one of its mattress products. (There were two mattress products; it's not known how many were sold in total.)

But no more.

After the liquidators were called in last week, Winkl's website remained active for a few days but with all products listed as sold out.

Then this week, the company's social media accounts and its website went offline.

Sheterline's plans for the future remain unclear.

On 17 May, he incorporated a new bed wholesaling company under the name Highland Distribution Group Ltd.

In a statement through his lawyers, Sheterline said that, "Questions relating to Winkl must be directed to the liquidators.

"It is not intended that Highland Distribution Group Ltd will trade."

Health queries

Stuff's original story in April documented the concerns of an Auckland family who had suffered months of unexplained skin irritations and respiratory problems. They believed their Winkl mattress was to blame.

Sarah* said she had never had skin problems until "crazy rashes" appeared last year. Her children also developed angry-looking lesions and unexplained blood noses. Her daughter had a rash on her face for three months.

Sarah's husband was sneezing all the time and had an "old man's cough". When he went away for three days the cough disappeared, and they realised it must be related to their home environment.

She eventually established that her home was contaminated with glass fibre particles, which she believes had caused her family's health problems.

At that stage, Winkl mattresses contained a product called CFGF (Continuous Filament Glass Fibre) for fire retardation.

The material can be safe, as long as it remains contained. If disrupted, the fibres can become airborne.

Winkl mattresses were marketed as having a removable, washable cover, which is how Sarah believes the fibres escaped.

Sheterline disputed it was the cause of Sarah's family's health concerns. "Our extensive research... found the fibres were not hazardous in any way and posed no health risk."

However, manufacturers of CFGF (Continuous Filament Glass Fibre) list a variety of possible risks from exposure including eye, nose and throat irritations, and skin irritations. They advise to avoid contact with skin, eyes and clothing.

Sheterline said the product had been discontinued by the manufacturer last year because of supply issues.

A flurry of reviews

On 7 June this year, a number of five star reviews of Winkl mattresses were posted on the business review website TrustPilot.

One, attributed to Sam Raines, read, "Best bed for my back and same day delivery, Winkl is the best."

Sam Raines is the managing director of The Web Guys, a company contracted to do Winkl's digital marketing.

Raines also formerly held a third share in Sheterline Van Der Boon Artificial Intelligence. Sheterline was a director and held a third share.

Further five star reviews were posted on TrustPilot on 7 June by accounts that appeared to be staff of The Web Guys, using their real names.

"Great for our campervan! Super comfy!," wrote one, a digital strategist at The Web Guys.

"My family suggested I try this brand and I didn't regret going for it because this is the best brand I tried so far that helps me sleep very deeply at night after a long tiring day at work," said another, an SEO specialist at The Web Guys.

A content writer for The Web Guys posted on TrustPilot, "Our mattress arrived fast, and we have had the best sleep since we started using it. I think the 120-night trial is a great idea but I definitely won't be sending mine back! 5/5. Highly recommended."

Three days later another review appeared. A project and accounts manager wrote, "Beautiful products and mattresses from a fantastic company! You get high-quality items without being overcharged!"

Raines told Stuff "there was nothing fishy going on" with the reviews. Winkl had offered staff a discount and that, having tried the mattresses and loved them, and because "they all really love Simon", they wrote the reviews, he said.

"We're allowed to buy products off clients and leave five star reviews." He did not believe there was any issue of transparency because "we are genuine customers".

"Simon's a really good guy and it's so unfair what you guys have done to him," he said. "He was just a guy trying to run a business."

TrustPilot is investigating.

Where does this leave Winkl's customers?

Short answer: without a warranty.

Winkl offered warranty periods of 10 and 15 years for mattresses, and three years for pillows.

The manufacturer of a New Zealand-made beds business said Winkl's liquidation was "disappointing" for Kiwi consumers of Winkl products.

"[They] now effectively have no warranty or comeback," said Napp general manager Brendan Erskine. "Promised warranties of 10 and even 15 years are completely worthless."

Winkl also offered a 120 night trial. "If it's not for you, we'll refund your money and donate it to charity," its promotional material said.

Now the company is shuttered, recent buyers will not be able to use that option.

What about the Kiwis chicks?

Stuff asked Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu which owns the National Kiwi Hatchery how many Kiwi sponsorships had been donated by Winkl, which said it would donate a sponsorship to every customer and by June this year had apparently sold 10,000 of just one of its brands of mattresses.

"We receive donations from a range of sponsors supporting kiwi conservation," National Kiwi Hatchery Manager Emma Bean said.

"Between October 2020 and June 2023, Winkl sponsored the hatching and raising of 39 kiwi chicks."

- Stuff