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Expanding a business worldwide is no small feat. For ambitious brands, building the right legal foundation can mean the difference between seamless scaling and hitting preventable roadblocks. In this case study, we explore how Sleep 8-a rapidly growing sleep lifestyle company-worked hand-in-hand with Sprintlaw UK to support their remarkable journey from a London launch to a multi-country retail presence.
If you’re considering international expansion, or want to see how robust legal support empowers growth, keep reading to learn how the right legal expertise helped Sleep 8 take giant steps towards global success.
Who Is Sleep 8? A Brief Business Overview
Founded in London in 2019, Sleep 8 has rapidly emerged as a standout brand in the sleep, furniture, and wellness space. Their unique blend of made-to-order upholstered beds, curated bedroom furniture, sofa beds, chairs, and innovative sleep gadgets is all designed to promote better rest and well-being.
But Sleep 8 isn’t just another furniture retailer. Their business model is vertically integrated, meaning they control the design, manufacturing, and retailing of their products. This enables the company to deliver top-quality goods under the Sleep 8 UK brand and ensures a consistent experience across all customer touchpoints.
Just five years after opening their first store, Sleep 8 now operates 36 high-street locations across the UK, Portugal, Spain, and Cyprus. Their vision? To become a truly global leader in sleep-focused lifestyle products-bringing their philosophy of health, comfort, and innovation to audiences worldwide.
What Were Sleep 8’s Ambitions & Challenges?
Rapid international expansion is exhilarating, but it also brings with it a host of new legal and practical hurdles. As Sleep 8 prepared to scale beyond the UK, they recognised the importance of having professional legal support at every stage of their journey.
Let’s break down what enabled Sleep 8’s remarkable progress-and the challenges they faced along the way.
Main Business Ambitions
- Grow their network of physical stores across new international markets
- Ensure compliance with complex legal and regulatory frameworks abroad
- Implement the best business structure to support cross-border operations
- Streamline internal processes to sustain rapid expansion
Key Legal Challenges
- Securing and negotiating commercial leases in multiple countries (each with different property laws, contract norms, and risks)
- Navigating complicated GDPR compliance and cross-border data protection obligations
- Adapting business structure and ownership to support multi-jurisdictional growth, including business restructuring and group reorganisation
- Drafting agreements and frameworks that would stand up in different legal systems, protecting the brand, IP and employees
- Ensuring consumer rights compliance across all markets, including the UK Consumer Rights Act 2015
This wasn’t just a matter of writing a few contracts-it meant ensuring Sleep 8’s systems were world-class from the ground up, to support fast but secure growth into new territories.
How Did Sprintlaw UK Help Sleep 8?
With their expansion plans taking flight, Sleep 8 needed a legal partner that was as dynamic and forward-thinking as their business model. That’s where Sprintlaw UK came in. Thanks to our deep experience supporting fast-growing businesses and founders worldwide, we were able to deliver the legal expertise Sleep 8 required across several critical areas:
1. End-to-End Legal Support for Cross-Border Retail
Sprintlaw provided a single point of contact for all of Sleep 8’s legal needs-no matter which country or business function was involved. This “one team” approach proved invaluable for management, letting them focus on growth rather than chasing different advisers in each jurisdiction.
Key services included:
- Reviewing and negotiating lease agreements for new Sleep 8 retail locations in the UK and Europe, covering rental terms, security, fit-out, break clauses, and dispute processes
- Advising on data protection, privacy notices, and cross-border transfers to guarantee full GDPR compliance in each locale
- Supporting business restructuring, including group company setup, share arrangements, and governance tailored for multi-country control
- Drafting and reviewing employment contracts, commercial supply agreements, and terms for new product launches
2. Responsive Advice at the Speed of Business
Fast-growing companies can’t afford slow legal turnaround. Sprintlaw UK assigned a nimble, dedicated legal team to the Sleep 8 project. This “on tap” approach meant Sleep 8 received swift responses to pressing queries, be it negotiating a new store lease or clarifying consumer rights in a particular country. Our advice was practical and tailored-never boilerplate or generic.
3. Building the Right Structures for Lasting Growth
Setting up the right business structure and contractual frameworks at the start prevents future headaches. Sprintlaw’s lawyers worked closely with Sleep 8’s directors and managers to:
- Establish robust group-company arrangements suitable for international retail, protecting intellectual property and minimising tax risk
- Ensure contracts with manufacturers, suppliers, and distributors offered the necessary protection if something went wrong
- Implement clear, compliant processes for data collection, customer consent, and marketing, based on GDPR and best practice
- Tailor employment agreements and workplace policies to account for variations between the UK and overseas labour laws
4. Ongoing Support for Strategic Decision-Making
As Sleep 8 expanded, new situations (and legal risks) kept arising. Sprintlaw UK’s continued support involved:
- Guidance on changing company ownership and adapting shareholding to investor needs or local regulations
- Risk analysis when considering franchise or partnership models abroad
- Reviewing and updating consumer-facing terms and policies as new products or services were launched
What Was the Impact of This Collaboration?
From the opening of new stores to launching innovative sleep gadgets, Sleep 8’s partnership with Sprintlaw UK was, in their words, a “game-changer” for their global ambitions. Here’s why:
Preparation for Rapid Expansion
With solid contracts, clear business structures, and full regulatory compliance, Sleep 8 was able to enter new markets with minimal friction. Instead of worrying about last-minute lease disputes, employment confusion, or overlooked consumer rights obligations, the management team focused on what they do best: delivering world-class products and experiences.
Legal Protection at Every Turn
Whether dealing with commercial landlords in London or managing privacy law across Europe, Sleep 8 had confidence in their legal frameworks. This empowered them to negotiate better deals, resolve disputes quickly, and avoid hidden liabilities that can otherwise trip up fast-growing companies.
Compliance, Reputation & Consumer Trust
Compliance isn’t just about ticking boxes. For a brand that serves thousands of sleep-focused customers, maintaining trust is everything. With GDPR checks, compliant contracts, and clear website policies in place, Sleep 8 built a reputation for operating transparently and ethically across all markets-protecting themselves and their customers.
Strategic Agility
Perhaps most importantly, Sleep 8’s leadership could make strategic decisions-opening new stores, trialling new countries, adapting business models-without being slowed down by legal uncertainty. Sprintlaw UK was there to answer complex questions promptly, letting Sleep 8 keep innovating at pace.
What Can New Businesses Learn from Sleep 8’s Story?
Not every business will scale internationally as quickly as Sleep 8, but the lessons remain the same for anyone with growth ambitions:
- Get legal advice early, not only when a problem arises: Prevention truly is better than cure, especially when competing on a global stage.
- Tailor your contracts and company structure for international realities: Don’t rely on UK-only documents or templates if you plan to operate overseas. Local laws can dramatically change your obligations and risk profile.
- Stay on top of compliance: From privacy and data handling to employment and consumer rights, falling foul of overseas law can mean heavy fines-or worse, being locked out of new markets.
- Build long-term relationships, not just one-off solutions: The right legal partner will become a key strategic adviser as your plans evolve.
- Put the right foundations in place from day one: Often, your ability to scale depends on how robust your governance, contracts, and policies are from the start. Get this right, and you’re ready for anything.
If you’re considering expanding internationally, you’ll also want to think about how cross-border contracts work and whether your current policies and documents are truly “export-ready.” It’s wise to have a lawyer review your contracts for each new market.
Key Takeaways
- Sleep 8 is a fast-growing sleep lifestyle retailer, launching in London and expanding across Europe with a vertically integrated model.
- They faced complex legal needs around commercial leasing, data protection, consumer compliance, structuring, and cross-border contracts.
- Sprintlaw UK provided end-to-end legal solutions-covering leases, GDPR, expansion frameworks, and ongoing strategic advice.
- This partnership enabled Sleep 8 to scale quickly and safely, with strong compliance, clear governance, and robust contracts at every stage.
- Any business with global ambitions should get tailored legal advice early, building the right protections and frameworks for international growth from the start.
Need Legal Help For Your Expanding Business?
If you’d like tailored legal support for your growing business-whether you’re looking to open new shops, expand overseas, or just make sure your legal foundations are solid-we’re here to help. Reach out for a free, no-obligations chat on 08081347754 or email [email protected]. Our friendly team will guide you every step of the way.
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