Senior Frontend Engineer

The story of Helix Sleep began not in a boardroom, but in a shared frustration among three friends at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. Adam Tishman, Kristian von Rickenbach, and Jerry Lin were in the midst of their MBA studies when they realized a glaring inefficiency in the mattress industry: the 'one-size-fits-all' model was fundamentally flawed. They believed that people's sleep needs were as unique as their fingerprints, yet the market offered only generic solutions that forced compromises on comfort and support.

Driven by this insight, the trio founded Helix Sleep in 2015 with a mission to disrupt the traditional mattress-buying experience through personalization and data. They developed a proprietary 'Sleep Quiz'—a simple yet powerful tool that analyzes a customer's body type, sleeping position, and firmness preferences to recommend a custom-configured mattress. This data-driven approach, often referred to as 'Mattress 2.0', allowed them to manufacture high-quality, personalized beds in the USA and ship them directly to consumers' doors, bypassing the confusing and expensive showroom experience.

The company's innovative model quickly gained traction, propelling Helix Sleep to become a leader in the direct-to-consumer sleep space. Their success culminated in a significant milestone in 2021, when Helix Sleep was acquired by Cerberus Capital Management and merged with Brooklyn Bedding to form 3Z Brands. Today, Helix continues to operate as a premier brand under this new platform, maintaining its commitment to individuality and quality while leveraging the manufacturing power of its parent company to deliver better sleep to thousands of customers across the country.