Two Canadian entrepreneurs turned a weighted blanket business into a sleep-products brand that attracted a major buyer within four years.
asserted
that → turn → years
Aaron Spivak and Lior Ohayon founded Hush after exploring how weighted blankets could help people sleep better.
uncertain
people → found → Hush
Their first product gained traction, but customers soon complained that it was too hot for summer.
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it → gain → summer
The founders used this feedback to develop a cooling version, which attracted thousands of backers on Kickstarter.
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which → use → Kickstarter
Their growing business caught the attention of Canadian retailer Sleep Country Canada, which bought a 52% stake in Hush for C$25 million in October 2021.
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which → grow → October
The deal valued the company at C$48 million.
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deal → value → million
How two Canadian entrepreneurs built Hush in four years
Hush was founded in 2017 by Aaron Spivak and Lior Ohayon.
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Hush → build → Spivak
The company launched its weighted blanket in Canada in 2018.
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company → launch → 2018
In a December 2025 interview with Forbes, Spivak explained how the idea took shape.
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idea → explain → shape
Ohayon had volunteered at a summer camp for children with special needs, where he encountered a sensory room with a weighted device.
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he → volunteer → device
That experience helped inspire the pair to explore weighted blankets and deep-touch pressure stimulation.
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experience → inspire → blankets
The founders spent about six months developing their first blanket while holding down full-time jobs.
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founders → spend → jobs
Spivak said they worked on Hush between 5 pm and 1 am and initially tested demand through pre-orders.
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they → say → orders
Spivak told Forbes that monthly sales rose from C$30,000 in the first month to C$60,000, C$120,000 and C$300,000 over the following months.
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sales → tell → months
These are figures reported by the founder, not independently audited results.
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These → report → founder
Customer feedback led to a cooling blanket
The early momentum did not last uninterrupted.
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momentum → lead → blanket
During Hush's first summer, sales slowed as customers complained that the weighted blanket became too hot in warmer weather.
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blanket → slow → weather
Spivak told Forbes that the founders surveyed 500 customers to understand the problem.
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founders → tell → problem
The feedback pointed to a clear opportunity: retain the appeal of a weighted blanket while making it cooler to use.
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it → point → blanket
The founders responded with Hush Iced, a cooling weighted blanket.
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founders → respond → Iced
They launched it on Kickstarter in March 2019, setting a funding target of C$25,000.
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They → launch → 25,000
The campaign ran from March 13 to April 12 and raised C$1,116,334 from 5,394 backers.
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campaign → run → backers
The response helped Hush expand beyond its first product.
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Hush → help → product
The company went on to sell pillows, sheets, mattresses and other sleep accessories, turning a single-product idea into a broader sleep-products business.
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company → go → business
Hush grew into a wider sleep-products brand
Hush's expanding product range attracted the attention of Sleep Country Canada, a major Canadian mattress and sleep-products retailer.
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range → grow → Canada
By October 2021, Hush offered weighted blankets, pillows, sheets and mattresses.
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Hush → offer → blankets
Sleep Country described the company as an eight-figure brand within its first 24 months.
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Country → describe → months
Spivak also told Forbes that Hush grew from approximately C$700,000 in its first year to a C$10 million business.
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Hush → tell → business
The expansion gave Hush a broader presence in the sleep-products market.
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expansion → give → market
It also offered Sleep Country an opportunity to strengthen its digital business and add an established direct-to-consumer brand to its portfolio.
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It → offer → portfolio
Sleep Country bought 52% of Hush in 2021
In October 2021, Canadian retailer Sleep Country acquired a 52% stake in Hush for C$25 million, valuing the sleep-products brand at C$48 million.
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Country → buy → million
The deal came just four years after Hush was founded, with co-founders Aaron Spivak and Lior Ohayon remaining involved in the business.
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Spivak → come → business
Sleep Country gradually increased its ownership, acquiring another 16% stake in 2023.
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Country → increase → 2023
In May 2024, it bought the remaining shares, bringing Hush fully under its ownership.
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it → buy → ownership
Hush continued to expand its product range
Hush continued developing its product portfolio after becoming part of Sleep Country.
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Hush → continue → Country
In April 2025, the company introduced Hush Little Baby, a product line for babies and toddlers.
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company → introduce → babies
In an interview with Retail Insider published that month, Hush president Phil Besner discussed the brand's expansion into bedding, pillows, mattresses and cooling sleep accessories.
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Besner → publish → bedding
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