Sanitary Mattress to produce Eastman House line
By David Perry -- Furniture Today, August 17, 2008
NORTH BRUNSWICK, N.J. — One of America's oldest bedding brands has a new licensee. Eastman House Mattress, whose history stretches back to 1866, has added Houston-based Sanitary Mattress Co. to produce its line for six states.
Eastman House officials say their brand is creating momentum in a tough bedding market. It offers high-end beds with strong margins and selective distribution, keys to making money in a highly competitive marketplace, the officials say.
Stuart Carlitz, CEO of Eastman House, based here, said Sanitary Mattress will produce Eastman House goods for Texas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Arkansas, New Mexico and Missouri.
Sanitary, owned by Steve and Stan Schnitzer, was a longtime King Koil licensee.
“We welcome Sanitary Mattress as the newest member of the Eastman House family,” Carlitz said. “Knowing the quality of their product and their dedication to this new joint venture, I look forward to working with both Stan and Steve and to their future success with Eastman House.”
Added Stan Schnitzer: “We are excited about this move. This will enable us to do more premium bedding.”
With the addition of Sanitary Mattress, Eastman House has four licensees. The others are veteran bedding producers Carlitz, based in New Jersey; Ken Wilschek, based in Ohio; and Don Balsavich, based in Michigan. Wilschek serves as president of Eastman House.
Balsavich, who also has a Restonic license, gave the Eastman House brand a boost when he signed on earlier this year. “He has brought in quite a number of Eastman House dealers,” Carlitz said.
“It's been plus business for us,” said Balsavich. “Dealers are buying the margins, service and quality offered by the line, and it's an easy line to sell.”
Carlitz said the Eastman House line, a coil-on-coil offering, has become well known for comfort, support and durability. The line starts at $999 and tops out at $3,000. Distribution will be selective, giving dealers the opportunity to offer a line that isn't carried by a retailer across the street, he said.
Recently joining the Eastman House team is Jared Carlitz, son of the CEO, who has been named director of marketing. He recently graduated from George Washington University with a degree in marketing.
Eastman House is one of three brands in Carlitz's bedding portfolio. He also owns the Eclipse brand, which has six factories in the United States and 24 overseas, and is a Therapedic licensee.
He said the dual licensing movement is an important one for second-tier producers, giving them a chance to expand their distribution with separate brands and distinct selling stories.
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