We spoke to John Tuton, founder and CEO of health and wellbeing expert Mammoth Group, to find out more about the company’s journey from start-up through to scale up with the help of funding.
Of course, we also discussed how we’ve supported them over the years with their day to day accounting and strategic financial forecasting.
First of all, tell us a bit about Mammoth Group
Mammoth Group is an NHS award winning health and wellbeing brand headquartered in Newcastle Upon Tyne.
Mammoth has come a long way since it was conceived in 2009, now with a product portfolio that includes sleep and comfort products alongside health insurance and services.
We’ve grown from a start-up, seeking funding, to an established scale up, backed by funding – which helped catapult us from strength to strength!
12 years after we first pioneered the use of Medical Grade foam in retail, Mammoth comfort products now feature on shop floors and online channels, up and down the country.
Mammoth is now an exclusive partner of the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy and the go-to brand for the sporting elite, from Tottenham Hotspur to the Rugby Players’ Association. The company has built up a solid reputation as the number one sleep and comfort brand for those who choose wellness.
Why did you start Mammoth Group in the first place?
In 2009 (the year I started the business) I sustained an injury during a rugby match. The injury left me in a great deal of pain, unable to work and struggling to sleep at night.
At the time I was working within the healthcare and medical technology fields. I was providing specialist medical mattresses and seating for seriously ill patients, and education to senior clinicians.
Knowing how much of a difference these specialist mattresses could make to pressure relief and support at night, I decided to add a layer to my own mattress at home – and the first Mammoth prototype was born.
I come from an entrepreneurial background, as some of my family own their own enterprises, and in 2000, I graduated from Newcastle Business School in business development.
My own experience of recovering from injury made me question why the very best materials for pressure relief, support and temperature regulation weren’t being used in mainstream consumer mattresses. And so the seed of the idea for Mammoth was sown.
Through my knowledge of the medical sector, my education and entrepreneurial instincts, it wasn’t long before the first Mammoth Sport mattress was brought to market, using a modified version of the high specification foam utilised in spinal injury units.
Our own Medical Grade foam has since gone on to set the industry standard for quality, has won us NHS Innovations awards and has gained the endorsement of sporting organisations and health professionals along the way.
