Share this on

Mattress Firm names industry veteran Charlie Eitel to board

Larry Thomas -- Furniture Today, January 27, 2012

HOUSTON — Former Simmons CEO Charlie Eitel has been elected to the board of directors of bedding retailer Mattress Firm.

Charlie Eitel

Mattress Firm, which went public last fall, said Eitel's appointment is effective Feb. 1. His election increases the size of the board to seven members.

"We are delighted that Charlie has agreed to join our board," said board Chairman William Watts. "His financial acumen and industry experience will provide complementary business skills to an already strong board. I am sure that he will make significant contributions to the continuing growth of Mattress Firm."

Eitel was Simmons chairman and CEO from 2000-08. He was named the company's vice chairman in October 2008 and remained in that post until late 2009, shortly after Simmons filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

After leaving Simmons, he co-founded the consulting firm Eitel & Armstrong, and he also is a partner in E&A Advisors, which advised middle-market companies on capital formation, acquisitions, divestitures, restructurings and private placements.

He currently is a director of Duke Realty Corp., American Fidelity Assurance Corp., and Criterion Brock. He also serves on the advisory board of Advanced Sleep Concepts, the holding company for Englander licensee Spears Mattress.

In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Mattress Firm said Eitel will receive an annual director's fee of $40,000, plus an additional $5,000 for serving on the board's audit committee.

Share this on

Eitel elected to Mattress Firm board

Feb 17, 2012

Also by this author

Also by Larry Thomas

Featured Company

Wright Labels

Bill and Tom Wright founded Wright of Thomasville in 1961 on the idea that printing was a creative medium and the belief that "a promise made is a promise kept." The Wright brothers focused their attention on providing exceptional printing for the... more