New Tempur-Pedic bed offers more familiar feel
By David Perry -- Furniture Today, February 19, 2007
Lexington, Ky. — Visco-elastic mattress leader Tempur-Pedic has brought a new mattress design to market and is aiming to attract a different group of consumers with it.
Tempur-Pedic's BellaSonna bed features a layer of latex cylinders in two densities that is topped with the company's proprietary Tempur material. Not only does that type of construction resemble a traditional innerspring bed in design, it also offers a feel that is more akin to that provided by a traditional bed.
Rick Anderson, president of Tempur-Pedic North America, said the BellaSonna bed, retailing at about $4,500 in queen, is perfect for consumers who haven't found a Tempur-Pedic bed to their liking.
"The BellaSonna bed will attract a whole new group of enthusiasts to Tempur-Pedic," Anderson said. "The feel is different from our other mattresses, but it is still instantly comforting and really quite luxurious. Our T-Flex system gives the mattress a more familiar, traditional feel, and when combined with our Tempur material gives consumers a beautiful night's sleep."
The company calls the T-Flex Support System "a patented matrix of hundreds of individually-adjusting cylindrical flexors." A queen-sized bed has 208 of the latex cylinders, each six inches high and four inches across at their widest point. The cylinders, which are injection molded, are connected with bands around the barrels.
The latex cylinders mark the first use of latex in Tempur-Pedic mattresses. Anderson said they provide "a bit of a bounce" and were chosen for the properties they impart to the mattress. Tempur-Pedic did not choose latex to endorse that type of foam, he said, noting that the cylinders are below a comfort layer of Tempur material and a support layer of Tempur material.
The company says that produces "a completely new sleep experience" that should appeal to consumers "who are reluctant to abandon the familiar feel of a traditional mattress."
Tempur-Pedic introduced the BellaSonna bed at the Las Vegas Market with flourish and fanfare. It kept the bed behind a curtain in the showroom and unveiled it at the height of a "Winning Hand" poker-themed party that filled the space with excited Tempur-Pedic dealers.
Anderson, who has a consumer products marketing background, said Tempur-Pedic is developing products to meet various consumer groups. BellaSonna, he said, targets the bedding "traditionalist."
Retailers responded with enthusiasm to the new bed in Las Vegas, Anderson said.
BellaSonna was Tempur-Pedic's featured introduction in Las Vegas, but wasn't the only new product. The company also brought out the SymphonyBed, which includes two layers of Tempur material. It is topped with a khaki velour cover and retails for $1,699 in queen.
And the company expanded its pillow line with the RhapsodyPillow, a comfort pillow for all types of sleepers. The dual-sided cover has Tempur-Tex on one side and a breathable microfiber suede on the other side. It matches the look of the company's RhapsodyBed, introduced a year ago, and retails for $199 in queen.
Anderson said the SymphonyBed and the RhapsodyPillow offer "therapeutic support and comfort for consumers searching for an answer to their sleepless nights."
Tempur-Pedic also used its Las Vegas market showing to stress the "winning hand" that it says it deals to its retailers, consisting of:
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Brand leadership: "Tempur-Pedic is the No. 1 brand in premium bedding thanks to powerful national advertising and ever-increasing brand awareness."
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High retail profit margins and "one of the highest sales per square foot in the industry."
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Proprietary Tempur material that "gives our products a competitive advantage, providing the most comfortable, restful, rejuvenating sleep surface in the industry."
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Consumer loyalty, with 91% of shoppers who purchase Tempur-Pedic recommending the brand to family and friends.
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Product innovation: "As the company that is 'changing the way the world sleeps,' Tempur-Pedic has become known for bringing revolutionary products to market."
