Bedding majors rolling out big new lines
By David Perry -- Furniture Today, February 12, 2007
Las Vegas — Bedding's biggest hitters are rolling out some big new lines for a market that offers the largest assortment of bedding introductions in recent memory.
Most of the Top 15 U.S. bedding producers are showing here, several in the World Market Center's new building B, and virtually all are unveiling new mattress lines. It will be a bedding buyer's paradise.
Industry sales leader Sealy, making its debut here in permanent showroom space, is showing its new promotional Sealy brand line, which will be compliant with the new fire-resistant standards by May. The national standard goes into effect in July, and that means that major new bedding lines being shown at this market will incorporate new open flame mattress protection.
Sealy said its promotional Sealy brand line, featuring nine models retailing at less than $700, offers higher profiles and improved feels. And, in a major development, Sealy said the line will carry a three-year warranty, a much shorter warranty than the 10-year warranties that are the industry standard. Retailers and industry experts have been clamoring for changes to warranties for years, Sealy executives noted.
Sealy says its new showroom welcomes visitors with images and designs that showcase its global leadership. The theme: "Sealy is your passport to sleep."
"Sealy's products have strong appeal domestically and internationally," said Philip Dobbs, senior vice president of marketing, "and the new showroom provides a perfect state-of-the-art environment to display our offerings to customers from as near as Los Angeles or as far away as Japan."
Simmons is introducing a new Beautyrest line at this market. Company officials said the streamlined line communicates step-up stories that are retailer and consumer friendly.
The Beautyrest Classic line includes two rows of heavy gauge Pocketed Coil springs for strengthened edge support, while the Beautyrest World Class line offers foam encasement and comfort materials like latex and memory foam. The Beauty-rest Exceptionale line has "Two Story" coil-on-coil construction, foam encasement, premium foam layers and luxurious fabrics, according to the producer. Pocketed Coils are used throughout the Beautyrest line.
Serta is using this market to debut its new Vera Wang by Serta collection. And the company is also devoting a separate showroom in the World Market Center (B-1045) to its Serta sleep shop program.
At Serta's original World Market Center showroom (A-710), the producer is unveiling what it calls "Spa Serta," offering healthy refreshments, soft lighting, massage chairs, and neck and shoulder massages, all in a spa-like setting.
"We chose the spa concept because it works well with the luxurious, pampering nature of the new Vera Wang by Serta Collection we are premiering," said Barbara Bradford, senior vice president of marketing.
Spring Air is introducing a new spokeswoman to talk about its new bedding lines. She is "Comfort Queen" Jennifer Louden, who has written several books designed to help women find comfort in their lives. Since comfort is a key bedding attribute and women are the primary decision makers in bedding purchases, Louden is well positioned to make an impact in the bedding market, Spring Air officials said.
Comfort Solutions is debuting a new Laura Ashley line. The broad offering, retailing from $599 to $2,499, features ticking with color, said Dave Roberts, president. "Some of the covers are very bold and some are very elegant," he said. "It depends on the statement the retailer wants to make."
The models feature correlating borders, and come in both encased coil and open coil designs, Roberts said.
Therapedic is focusing on the airbed market, one that is expected to attract a number of new introductions as that category continues to grow. Therapedic's new AirTouch line retails from $1,999 to $2,999 and is designed to provide significant product differentiation, said Jeffrey Sherman, the Therapedic licensee who is the architect of the new line.
The AirTouch line has a six-zone adjustable air chamber, compared to the two adjustable air chambers in competitors' models. "We figured that when it comes to comfort, you can never have enough choices," Sherman commented.
Restonic, exhibiting in its new Connie Post-designed showroom, unveils its new retail selling concepts — and several specialty sleep introductions. The producer is working in some well-established categories like airbeds, latex beds and visco-elastic foam beds, but is also trying out some new categories, including gel bedding and magnet bedding.
Restonic's Flex Rest Gel Bed has honeycomb-like gel cells that it says allow for greater airflow, thus keeping the surface of the mattress cooler. And the Sleep Odyssey Magnet Bed features two-inch-wide magnetic strips, which Restonic says are medically proven to reduce pain, accelerate healing and improve circulation.
In addition, Restonic is showing its redesigned ComfortCare flagship line, which features Silhouette Foam, a convoluted, pressure-relieving cushioning material.
