Epoch Hometex launches Naturals-focused utility bedding

By Staff -- Home Textiles Today, 9/19/2007 1:39:00 PM

Burlingame, Calif. – Epoch Hometex has launched a new division, Alternative Naturals, which consists of down-alternative utility bedding products that use natural fill as opposed to polyester-based fill.

The idea is to develop “unique fabrics and fills that will truly advance the category,” but which already have solid consumer acceptance, said Bill Watchman, vp, sales and marketing.

Cotton Loft, one of the new fills, employs a technique that creates a voluminous cotton fill from the same amount of raw material used to create cotton batting. The fill is chemical free and hypo-allergenic, said Watchman. It also has the same relative heat retention as down, the most heat-retentive of fills.

Other Alternative Naturals products include washable, wool-filled comforters as well as hemp-blend pillows, which emphasize hemps natural anti-dustmite properties.

Also new under the Alternative Naturals umbrella is Nanofibre, a line of protectors, pads, comforters, duvet covers, pillows and cases that employ nanotechnology to made the items water-proof and stain-resistant. “We think we have a hand and a performance that is superior to competing products,” said Watchman.

The first wave of Alternative Naturals products ships in October. The collection is priced to fall in the middle of existing retail price grids.