Simba and Zendesk: built for rest, ready for scale

A thread that never sleeps

Simba Sleep’s story begins not with a mattress, but with a spool of thread. In 1979, that thread made its way into a Derbyshire factory—and eventually into over 50 million mattresses around the globe. What started as a quiet presence in the background of the sleep industry quickly spun into something bolder: a vision to reshape it entirely.

In 2015, that thread of innovation came full circle. Equipped with insights from over 10 million body profiles—and an unstoppable drive to revolutionise sleep—Simba launched its own line of hybrid mattresses. The result was a fusion of proprietary Simbatex® foam, conical pocket springs, and aerospace-inspired cooling materials, all meticulously engineered to deliver deep rest and dynamic support. Every layer is crafted with purpose, combining cutting-edge design with human-centred comfort to meet the demands of modern sleepers.

Simba’s mission to improve global sleep is matched by a customer experience team that does more than just support—it guides. Led by Graham Paddon, Head of Customer Experience, the team spans around 23 customer care specialists—from frontline agents and returns experts to a dedicated outbound team that reconnects with customers who’ve shown intent but haven’t yet made a purchase.

Operating fully remotely across the UK, Lisbon and Toronto, the team handles between 9,000 and 16,000 customer contacts per month through email, live chat, review platforms, retail partners, and online marketplaces—all within a seamlessly integrated Zendesk environment. “We’ve got a dream team of care experts,” says Graham, “and our job is to guide people to a better night’s sleep by being there when they need us most, with empathy and speed.”

From inbox to insight

Before Simba became a household name in sleep innovation, its customer conversations lived in a simple shared inbox. However, as the business took off, that email-only setup offered no way to manage rising volumes, prioritise issues, or understand the full customer journey. It became clear that what Simba needed wasn’t just a better way to reply—they needed a platform to build from. “It was a very easy decision when we started the company in 2015,” recalls Graham. “We immediately got Zendesk in—and we’ve not looked back since.”

From the start, Zendesk gave Simba the structure to scale and the freedom to evolve. With core channels unified and customer insights flowing, the team began to experiment—testing new ways to support shoppers earlier in their journey. That included adding live chat prompts and timed pop-ups to help guide purchase decisions. It was all part of a broader philosophy: meet customers where they are, listen to them and iterate constantly.

After analysing heatmaps and surveying more than 1,000 users, one insight stood out: mobile shoppers—who make up nearly 70% of Simba’s traffic—found the pop-ups more intrusive than helpful. The team moved quickly to adjust, removing the interruptions and refining the journey. Simba doesn’t wait for change—they build it in. With Zendesk as their launchpad, experimentation now fuels every touchpoint.

The sleep stack behind the scenes

Simba has built its customer experience on a platform that brings every conversation, channel, and data point into one unified view. From emails and reviews to marketplace queries and retail partner tickets, everything is managed through Zendesk’s agent workspace—fully integrated with Shopify, Trustpilot, and Qualtrics. “We know who our customers are, where they are, what they’ve ordered, how many times they’ve ordered—and that means we know where to focus,” says Graham.

Self-service plays a vital role in reducing friction, and Zendesk Guide powers both sides of that equation. Externally, customers can access a clean, intuitive FAQ; internally, agents rely on a constantly evolving knowledge base for QA, onboarding, and daily operations. A dedicated knowledge lead ensures both stay up to date with product launches, new processes, and recurring contact themes. During peak periods, the team can even deploy real-time banners through Guide to keep customers informed.

For moments that matter—like checkout or a promotional rush—Zendesk Chat provides immediate, contextual support. The system flags rising queues and automatically turns missed chats into tickets, so no customer goes unanswered or unheard. Agents not scheduled on chat can jump in as needed, allowing the team to respond dynamically. “If there’s a payment issue or error notification, chat lets us act instantly—and we can escalate to the right internal team in seconds,” says Graham.

Behind the scenes, Zendesk Workforce Management (WFM) ensures that service quality scales with demand. Using historical data and ecommerce forecasts, Simba accurately predicts contact volumes and aligns staffing accordingly. Agents have full visibility into their schedules and can easily manage shift swaps—particularly valuable for a remote team. “It gives us control, flexibility, and the ability to track productivity in a meaningful way,” Graham explains.

The results behind the rest

By centralising service and insight, Simba has evolved its customer experience into a proactive, data-led operation built for speed, empathy, and trust. And the impact is clear. Between Q1 and Q2, the team achieved a 27% increase in replies sent within four hours, an 8% drop in first reply time, and an 11% improvement in full resolution time—all without increasing headcount. “We manage everything within Zendesk,” Graham notes, highlighting the team’s ability to scale intelligently through better structure and visibility.

Simba’s Customer Effort Score (CES) also increased by 0.4 points, reflecting meaningful progress toward their goal of reducing customer effort to zero—or as close as possible. For Graham, these metrics are about more than just performance—they represent a shift in mindset. “We have shifted from closing tickets to opening trust and long-term customer relationships and brand advocates,” Graham explains.

And that commitment to trust is increasingly visible beyond internal metrics. Simba’s Trustpilot score rose by 0.1 points, even in the face of an isolated Q4 product issue that drove up returns and contact volumes. The team used Zendesk’s categorisation tools and side conversations to route images and issue details directly to the product team—identifying the root cause and resolving it quickly. “These features gave us the ability to act decisively and prevent a short-term issue from becoming a long-term problem,” said Graham.

Internally, Simba has used Workforce Management not just to streamline operations, but to strengthen team culture. By surfacing real-time performance metrics and enabling more flexible scheduling, they’ve empowered agents to track progress, take ownership, and support one another across shifts. “Productivity has substantially improved—WFM has made performance more transparent and actionable for the team and the team leads,” states Graham. The result is a CX operation that’s not only more efficient, but more connected—one that strengthens relationships with every interaction.

Rest assured: the next chapter

“Zendesk pioneers the way companies should support customers.”Graham Paddon, Head of Customer Experience at Simba SleepSimba’s customer experience strategy is far from finished—it’s evolving to become even more intelligent, personalised, and predictive. The team is focused on building stronger connections by being present at just the right moments, particularly before issues ever arise. “I want us to reach out before the customer has to,” says Graham. “That presence and availability—proactive and in the right place—is what great CX should be.”

AI is central to Simba’s next phase. The team is actively exploring Zendesk’s AI capabilities, including agent assist, intelligent triage, and AI-powered workflows to further streamline internal operations and free up agents to focus on higher-value conversations. “AI shouldn’t be used to shield us from customers,” Graham explains. “It’s a tool we leverage to build scalable support with 24/7 access for customers. We work hard to ensure customers have open access and seamless handoffs to the team for more personal support as and when needed.”

That commitment to progress is backed by partnership. Simba sees Zendesk not just as a platform, but as a strategic ally—one that helps them stay ahead of customer expectations through collaboration, innovation, and access to a vibrant community. “Zendesk pioneers the way companies should support customers,” says Graham. “The updates, the insights, the roadmap—it’s all there. It’s up to us to make the most of it.” For Simba, better sleep starts long before bedtime—and with Zendesk they have the tools to deliver calm, even in moments of complexity.