Sleeping with a system: Bed Ais by riposa

Iva Schnellmann and Reta Schnellmann have a mission: they want to give people optimal sleeping comfort without compromise or unnecessary fuss. The two sisters have run riposa, a Swiss family business, together since 2018. Since it was founded two decades ago, the brand has become known for manufacturing high-quality sleep systems with the ultimate goal of promoting holistic sleep health. 'When we relax properly and recover well at night, we have more energy for the day and more joy in life', the company emphasises. Today, 70 employees work with great attention to detail at three locations in Glarus to develop sleep systems, box spring beds and beds for every preference and every back.

Anyone who talks to Iva Schnellmann can see the spark in her eyes: 'In the last three years, we’ve worked a lot on the company’s organisation and structures, alongside further product development and new innovation launches,' she says. For example, the sisters have also introduced a completely new product category: the brand's first wooden bed, Bed Ais, created by Swiss designer Jörg Boner. With this product launch, Iva and Reta took a significant step towards the future, making company history with their new ideas.

In Jörg Boner, they found someone able to build bridges between the company's beginnings and its ambitions. 'A bed is like a border that protects and shelters us as we move from day to night', he says. For Bed Ais, he created clear and simple lines that require the best raw materials. This item is made entirely of solid Swiss ash, and the wood is treated in the factory with the greatest care to ensure regularity in its structure.

'Bed Ais by riposa is a fascinating symbiosis of round, gentle shapes and straight, clear lines', explains the designer. 'The interplay between these opposites creates a visual tension that characterises the design as a whole'. The bed is available either with or without a headboard. In addition, the headboard is available in two heights so the appearance of the bed can be adjusted to different mattress heights or individual preferences.

There are five colour options to choose from: ranging from a light natural shade to light grey or silk white, to the bold accent colours of night blue and carmine red. Colour-coordinated cushions laid loosely over the headboard, made in the riposa studio from high-quality textiles by Kvadrat, complement the Bed Ais. Additionally, riposa offers Clip Ais, a small storage table that is easy to attach to the side of the bed frame. A mobile bedside table is also available: the Sidetable Ais, which subtly embraces the shape of the bed and can be placed in two positions.

It goes without saying that the Bed Ais can be combined with all riposa slatted bases and mattresses. All the company's sleep systems and beds are characterised by a functional principle that riposa developed called Swiss Sleep Technology: 'contour, support and ventilate.' The classic among the back support mattresses is the Grandessa model, which riposa introduced to the Swiss market almost 20 years ago as the first Swiss back support mattress ever.

Relaunched in spring 2021, this back support mattress provides active lumbar support that remains the central element for a particularly ergonomic body position – for back, stomach and side sleepers alike. New features include the breathable climate surface and the ventilation system, which has been refined according to current research, as well as a newly designed mattress cover. In the Luxe version, the Grandessa was also given linen piping and reinforced sides, so that double beds with two mattresses don't have that annoying gap. 'With the relaunch, we have brought the Grandessa into the present and made it fit for the future', says Reta.

Finally, the sleeping system is completed according to the modular principle: for example, the lightweight aluminium riposa Flex slatted base ensures perfect sleeping comfort. Because, as the company says, 'only with the right insert slatted base can a back support mattress achieve its full functionality'.

There is no doubt that riposa is continuously working to realise sleep perfection. One Bed Ais will likely be followed by more: after all, 'ais' means 'one' in Swiss German dialect – and where there is one, there will often be two.

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