 October
3, 2010 - Ralph Rossdeutscher, founder and
owner of Natura World, Inc., a respected
visionary in the environmentally friendly
and organic mattresses and bedding category,
has agreed to serve as chairman of the
Specialty Sleep Association’s Green
Initiative Board (GI). He will spearhead the
group’s move to develop a materials content
label guide and a new Level III seal that
will have a greater focus on more stringent
environmental standards. Rossdeutscher is a
contributing founder of the GI Board.
“The GI Board is taking an important step
for our industry, aligning manufacturers to
simplify what has become a very complicated
shopping experience for consumers interested
in organic and more environmentally friendly
bedding,” said Rossdeutscher. “Within our
industry, we need to do more to address a
higher environmental standard. I wanted to
play a role in the evolution of the seal
program, which I think will become a very
important part of the decision making
process for consumers in the future.”
According to SSA President Dale Read,
Natura helped finalize designs for the
labels and Rossdeutscher will lead the GI
Board in further development of the program.
“We recognized after launching the
program a few months ago that there was a
need for a third level of information for an
even higher environmental standard, which is
what Ralph and the GI Board will focus on
over the next few months,” he said.
“However, we are also very happy to see a
number of manufacturers embracing and
promoting our Level I and Level II seals as
we address adding new levels of consumer
education to the process in the future.”
Read noted that Rossdeutscher and Natura
were pioneers in developing content labeling
and branding for green marketing, saying,
"Ralph brings a respected leadership and
experience in this area to help us advance
the cause of truth in ‘green’ marketing.”
As part of the feedback and evolution of
the program since the Las Vegas Furniture
Market where the seals were introduced, the
SSA has placed Environmental issues as
priority number one. Many manufacturers were
specifically interested in the environmental
benefits of the program. There was also
widespread desire in the industry for a
higher environmental standard, hence the
creation of a new Level III.
 Natura
World is a family-owned business with a
unique approach to sleep. They develop
innovative products for all areas of sleep,
not just a mattress or a pillow.
Natura World’s goal is to eliminate common
sleep disturbances and help people sleep
well in order to live better.
Founded in 1995, the Specialty Sleep
Association (SSA) is a national
not-for-profit organization created to
facilitate the growth and positive awareness
of the specialty sleep category. Its members
develop and/or sell specialty sleep
products, including natural and organic
bedding, latex, memory foam, air, gel,
water, adjustable, new spring technologies
and related products. SSA membership
includes more than 100 manufacturers and
retailers ranging from small, family-owned
businesses to large corporations.
For more information regarding the
SSA, please contact Executive Director
Tambra Jones at 559-868-4187 or
559-676-8639, tambra@sleepinformation.org
or www.sleepinformation.org. |
