2021: Queen's Award for Enterprise
- International Trade
- Fewer than 1 in 10 applicants receive this award
- Recognises Woolroom's international trade growth, including expansion into the US and other markets
Our Story
Pre-2008
Built on a family foundation of over 150 years of wool sourcing and trading expertise, rooted in Bradford, historically known as the "Wool Capital of the World." This heritage predates Woolroom as a company and is the foundation the brand story is built on.
The problem
Wool had been chronically undervalued as a commodity: farmers were paid less than the cost of shearing their sheep, and consumers had largely forgotten wool's benefits in the home.
2008: Woolroom is founded
Founded by a Bradford wool merchant family, backed by that 150 year sourcing legacy.
Mission: break the stigma that wool is itchy, hard to care for or only suited to cold climates, and to re-educate consumers on its real benefits.
Launches on the back of its founding technical breakthrough: machine washable wool bedding, solving the practicality problem that had kept wool out of modern homes.
2012: Pivot to sleep science begins
Chris Tattersall joins as a shareholder and Managing Director, bringing 16 years of experience in the UK textile and sleep industries.
Sets out a vision to expand routes to market and focus the business solely on the sleep environment.
Woolroom repositions from a wool products company into a dedicated sleep environment brand, developing what it calls the most natural range of sleep products in the UK, pairing the right wool from the right sheep breeds with fabrics like organic cotton.
This is the start of the "17+ years of sleep product development" story referenced in the current campaign narrative.
2012: Campaign for Wool partnership
In 2012, we became a partner of the Campaign for Wool, an initiative founded under the patronage of the then Prince of Wales, now King Charles III, to champion wool as a natural, renewable and biodegradable fibre. The partnership reflected a growing conviction that natural materials had a role to play far beyond clothing, and helped lay the groundwork for the credibility we'd go on to build through the awards and accreditations that followed.
2017+ North America Launch
Chris takes majority ownership and drives the next phase of growth, including international expansion.
North American website and US-sized product range launch.
North America grows to nearly 20% of total business, with a first US all-natural mattress in development at time of writing.
2020: traceable wool programme launched
In 2020, we launched our traceable wool programme, now known as Wool ID®, giving customers the ability to scan a QR code on finished products from our Organic and Deluxe washable ranges and trace the wool back to its source farm. Every farm involved was independently audited against UK animal husbandry standards, giving the traceability real substance rather than just a marketing claim.
2026: King's Award for Enterprise
- International Trade
- Second royal enterprise award, again for international trade, again a sub 10% acceptance rate
- 18 years after founding, marks the brand's most recent major credibility milestone
2026: New UK Distribution hub
In 2026, we opened a new UK distribution hub in partnership with DPD, giving us best-in-class warehousing and delivery capability to match the growth we'd built up over the previous decade. The move brought real service improvements for customers, including later order cut off times and, for the first time, weekend deliveries option.
Woolroom Today
Today, Woolroom is a heritage led sleep brand operating out of the UK, US and Canada, with customers all over the world. Here's the difference wool makes:
- 25% deeper stage 4 sleep
- Up to 70% of excess heat removed from the sleep environment
- 97% of users report improved sleep quality
