Independent bed retailer Dreamland Bedding Centre has seen the business and its General Manager nominated for four prolific retail awards.
Dreamland has been shortlisted in the Retail Gazette Retail Excellence Awards for Homeware Retailer of the Year, as well as for the Community Impact Award in the Retail Bulletin People in Retail Awards 2026.
Furthermore, also in the People in Retail categories, Matthew Randle, General Manager, has been shortlisted for Store Manager of the Year (Small Estates) and the Outstanding Achievement Award.
The awards look at leadership, people development, community impact, sustainability and the wider contribution a business makes, which reflects “quite closely how we try to operate at Dreamland”, says Matthew.
“Personally, it’s quite nice to receive this recognition. I’ve been told by various people that I do a lot, although I’m never entirely convinced that I do anything particularly special. I tend to think I’m just getting on with things that need doing. Being shortlisted for awards like these does make you stop and think that perhaps some of those things are having more of an impact than I realise.”
For the business, Matthew added that it is particularly valuable. “We are an independent retailer competing in a sector that contains some very large businesses, so to be recognised alongside companies with vastly greater resources is something I’m incredibly proud of.
“It demonstrates that size doesn’t necessarily determine what a business can achieve. A smaller independent business can still compete, innovate, develop its people and make a genuine difference in its community.”
Dreamland is up against OKA, Next Home and Home Furnishings in the Retail Gazette Homeware Retailer of the Year category, while in the People in Retail Community Impact Award, the retailer is the same pool as AllSaints Group, Card Factory, COOK, Lincolnshire Co-op Ltd, Eden Shopping Centre, OurCoop and The Pre-Loved Prom Pop-Up Shop.
The People in Retail Awards (PiRA) 2026 celebrate the individuals and teams who are driving excellence, innovation and positive change across the retail industry. The Awards recognise those shaping the future of retail through inspirational leadership, outstanding store management, people development, sustainability and rising talent.
For Matthew, he is shortlisted with other managers from companies such as Austen & Blake, Frome Valley Local Store, Lisa Angel, ProCook and Trotters, while in the Outstanding Achievement Award, it’s between Matthew and Erin Dunn-Morgan, Compass Group.
On making the respective shortlists, Matthew revealed that a big part of it comes down to being given the trust and freedom to actually make a difference. “Mike Brown has put a huge amount of faith in me and has allowed me to challenge how we do things, try new ideas and, importantly, get things wrong occasionally without being afraid to try again.
“I also think we’ve never been particularly interested in simply doing things because “that’s how retail has always been done”. We’ve tried to question things, whether that’s how we develop our staff, how we work with suppliers, how we support our customers or how we engage with the community.
“I think the judges have probably seen that wider picture. It’s not just about what Dreamland has achieved commercially, or what I’ve done personally, but about creating a business where people care about what they do and where there is a genuine willingness to keep improving.”
Winning would be a “fantastic achievement”, Matthew continued, but added that the real significance would go beyond having another award on the shelf. “For me, it would be recognition that the approach we’ve taken at Dreamland is working, that you can build a successful retail business while still putting people, the community and the wider impact of the business at the heart of what you do.
“We often talk about the triple bottom line; people, planet and profit. Those things don’t have to be competing priorities. Done properly, they can actually strengthen one another. If we were to win, I would see it as recognition not just for me, but for everyone who has contributed to what Dreamland has become, our staff, the wider team, our suppliers, our customers and Mike, who has given me the trust and freedom to implement many of the changes we’ve made.
“Ultimately, I’d hope it would also show other independent retailers that you don’t need to be a huge national business to make a difference.”
The shortlist recognition, and previous award wins, have changed Matthew’s view on accepting the praise around accolades. Once thought as a “vanity metric”, Matthew now understands the importance of being highlighted as leaders in its field. “We’ve been shortlisted for and won quite a lot of awards across a fairly broad spectrum over the last few years. I’ll be honest, at one point I thought awards were potentially a bit of a vanity metric.
“But we have them prominently in the centre of the store, and I’ve actually changed my view. Customers regularly talk to our staff about the awards. I think that has two really positive effects. Firstly, when our staff talk about them, you can see the pride they have in what the team has achieved.
“In retail, where you can have a difficult or dull day, that little reminder of what you’ve achieved can genuinely lift the mood. Secondly, customers buy into it. It gives them confidence in the business and reinforces that they are dealing with a retailer that is doing things properly.
“I’d also really encourage more businesses in our sector to put themselves forward for awards. There are so many genuinely good businesses in bed retail, and I don’t think enough of them get the recognition they deserve.
“Sometimes you don’t realise how much you’re doing until somebody else looks at it from the outside and says, actually, this is worth recognising.”
The Retail Excellence Awards take place on 14 October 2026, while the winners of the People in Retail Awards are announced on 24 September 2026.
