About us
The Drowsy story
After five years of running high-pressure hospitality businesses together, brothers Thom and Rich Hemelryk developed chronic insomnia. On a mission to reclaim their lost sleep, they set up Drowsy. 2 years on, the cult sleep mask has become one of the most talked about products by UK beauty editors. Drowsy is the luxury antidote to our stressful, modern lives, helping customers get the glorious sleep they deserve.
PART 01
Burnout
We were working 16 hour days running a hospitality business. With no time to wind down, the stress, anxiety, and tension from the day carried over to bedtime. Unable to switch off, our constant sleeplessness snowballed into chronic insomnia and total burnout.
PART 02
Life overhaul
With no energy to put into relationships, decreased productivity and increasingly unhealthy habits, we realised it was time for a serious change. We sold all of our business and decided to get our lives back on track.
PART 03
Sleep obsessed
Sleep became our focus for each day so that we could guarantee a good night. Slowly but surely we got back to living life at 100% and sleeping better than ever. We discovered that insomnia is a chronic, global problem with serious implications for people's health and wellness.
Fact
"Two thirds of UK adults suffer from disrupted sleep"
PART 04
It started as a dream
We started thinking.... What could we create that would make bedtime irresistibly good? Something that genuinely helped improve people's sleep. And deliver an experience so luxurious that the day's stress melts away, making deep sleep easy.
PART 05
The seeds of Drowsy
Suddenly we'd embarked on a year long journey to make the ultimate sleep mask. Something that was a glorious retreat from the world. A safe place from the days stress, where no light gets in. An experience so luxurious that bedtime would naturally signal "deep sleep".
PART 06
Drowsy is born
After 12 months of product testing, hundreds of fabrics, fillings, and designs, we launched our sleep mask 1.0. It was created by us and for us. We didn't know if it was what the world wanted, but it helped our own sleep so much, that we were desperate to get it out there and start changing lives.
PART 07
The day everything changed
After 6 months of low sales, we were starting to panic. What if we were mistaken? But then in August 2020 we got the call that changed everything. One of the UK's leading beauty editors had discovered our mask and she was obsessed. We were going to be featured on national TV the following day and should "get ready".
PART 08
Chaos
The fallout from our TV appearance was bigger than anything we ever could have dreamed of. The mask sold out in minutes and we spent 2 months dealing with a backlog of orders. In the following weeks and months Drowsy went on to be featured in some of the world's leading beauty publications. Luxury sleep had finally entered the mainstream conversation.
Drowsy today
We are still as obsessed with sleep as ever. We run a very small team with our 2 best friends and our partners who help with every detail of the business. We still struggle to sleep occasionally, but this time we're prepared! Since launching we have redesigned the mask multiple times. Our office doubles up as an in-house sleep lab where we tirelessly work to perfect our products. And we can now proudly say that we have helped changed thousands of lives with transformational beauty sleep.
ABOUT
Our drivers
Sleep obsessed
We're obsessed with sleep because we've experienced firsthand what happens when you don't get enough of it. Lack of sleep affects your mental and physical health, relationships and productivity. We're here to fight back with a 5 star luxury treatment that rewrites the sleeping rulebook.
Quality focused
We prioritise quality in every aspect of Drowsy products to create an unrivalled sleeping experience. We make our products for ourselves. They make a huge difference to our sleep, which is why we want to share them with the world. We proudly bring you glorious sleep with no expense spared.
All for the perfect night
With a philosophy that every night should be better than the last, we continuously test and evolve our products. We are also proud to be completely transparent about every step of our production process. Please see our Corporate Responsibility Statement for an in depth look at the cogs that run the Drowsy machine.