New partnership to bring Jacuzzi to bedding world
Thurmo-Pudic becomes Jacuzzi Sleep Systems
By David Perry -- Furniture Today, July 2, 2007
High Point — Jacuzzi Brands is entering the upscale specialty mattress arena in partnership with Thurmo-Pudic USA.
Thurmo-Pudic, a specialty bedding producer based here, is changing its name to Jacuzzi Sleep Systems. Its gel visco, which company officials say has unique properties, will be a major feature of the new line.
Tom Koos, president and CEO of Jacuzzi Brands, based in Chino, Calif., said this is the first consumer products license granted by the maker of luxury spas and hot tubs. He said luxury sleep systems are a good fit for a company aiming to promote health and wellness with its products.
Koos joined Thurmo-Pudic officials at a reception in Archdale, N.C., to announce the new licensing partnership.
"We would only go into sleep systems with technology that fits in at the high end," he said, adding that he's impressed with Thurmo-Pudic's gel visco, developed by Dynamic Systems.
Tom Morgan, president of Thurmo-Pudic, has been in talks with a number of bedding producers about expanding distribution of Thurmo-Pudic's products.
Morgan said Jacuzzi is a well-known brand that his company can leverage to produce substantial sales in the mattress industry.
"We are so fortunate to enter the market with a powerful brand name like Jacuzzi," he said. "We think dealers will love our products. We are committed to making the finest luxury support mattresses there are."
Jacuzzi beds will be produced in the Archdale and Asheboro, N.C., areas in existing facilities, Morgan said, adding that the company's production partners are investing in the new company.
The Jacuzzi bedding line will retail from about $1,599 to $6,000 in queen. It will carry a 15-year warranty, the first five years of which are non-prorated. Morgan said the company will replace a mattress if it develops a body impression of more than one inch in depth.
The new line will be shown at the High Point Market this fall, he said. Plans also call for the line to be shown in Las Vegas.
Morgan said the company won't direct-market the Jacuzzi bedding line, but will sell to retailers who ask for the product and are located more than 50 miles from an existing Jacuzzi bedding retailer.
Koos and Morgan both said there's a "green" story to the new gel visco, about 40% of which consists of vegetable extracts. Morgan said the company will tout an "environmentally friendly" message in its marketing.
Jacuzzi Sleep Systems could help create as many as 90 new jobs in the next year if the company secures placements with key national accounts, according to Morgan.
