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Food, dresses, showgirls: Perrys salute best in Vegas
It’s time for a Las Vegas edition of the Perrys, presented by yours truly for notable achievements in the bedding marketplace.
Best achievement in mattress flammability: Sealy, for its inclusion of fire-resistant materials throughout its new flagship Posturepedic line. Now that Sealy has added FR protection to the bulk of its lines, we hope other majors quickly will follow suit. Time is life on this issue.
Best new ad campaign: Simmons, for the return of the bowling ball. Dealers wanted it and Simmons delivered — reworked, in touch with the times and carrying a key message. I especially enjoyed a behind-the-scenes look at how Simmons filmed the spots at a Hollywood shoot.
Best market breakfast: Tempur-Pedic. The visco leader wins easily in this vital category (well, it’s vital to me, anyway) for its spectacular Breakfast in Bed event. I saw all of my favorite food groups, including doughnuts, on the groaning boards. There’s nothing like a great breakfast buffet to get the bedding crowd off to a good start. Oh, and the new beds were appetizing too.
Best celebrity appearance: Kathy Ireland at Therapedic. Kathy made a graceful kickoff speech at Therapedic’s Mandalay Bay party, helping to launch her new bedding line. “Try to stay awake when you try the beds,” Kathy told marketgoers. She’s a class act.
Best use of showgirls: Kingsdown. This is another of those key categories I’m happy to size up, as it were. Showgirls stationed in the Venetian directed retailers to Kingsdown’s “Sleepless in Las Vegas” event. An excellent merchandising move.
Most dressed up showroom: Serta, which accessorized its space with Vera Wang dresses, calling attention to its new line with the noted fashion designer. The Counting Sheep were happy to welcome her to the Serta flock. The beds got good marks for value.
Most retail-friendly showroom: Comfort Solutions by King Koil. Martin Roberts and his team at Grid2 did a wonderful job. The space was full of good ideas for bedding retailers. Grid2, by the way, will design Spring Air’s new permanent showroom in Las Vegas.
Best foam innovation: Kaymed, for its Memory Nests of memory foam. Their scooped-out shape gives them the look of cells, and the air displacement the cells produce yield the sensation of flotation sleep, the company says. Very clever.
Best market party: Setting aside the always-packed Furniture/Today fete, the winner is Leggett & Platt. The components major took over the House of Blues at Mandalay Bay for a wonderful evening of entertainment, food and fellowship. It was a who’s who of the bedding industry.
I know I’m leaving out several worthy companies, but I’m out of space. If I missed you in Vegas, send me an e-mail and tell me what was new for your company. (to add public comments click on "Add your Comment" below, or to email Dave directly click here.)
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gary teague commented:
Hi Dave - In your opinion, do you think there's an after market for mattresses covers that will prevent a non FR mattress from burning?
David Perry commented:
It's nice to see all these postings. On this last point, yes, other things burn in the bedroom. But there is a considerable fuel load in the mattress. CPSC seems especially proud of the mattress standard it just approved. We should be, too. And on your waterbed point, hey, I think you are onto something there. Waterbed companies could say their beds come with "inherent fire-dousing systems." -Dave
FR - commented:
Since when do we believe the federal government? Ok. Just kidding (sort of). Yes, one life lost is too many. However, I am just curious as to the real numbers, of deaths due to the mattress catching on fire, vs. smoke, and other entities. It just seems to me that there are so many other components in the bedroom that should be held to these high standards as well. Would like to see a flamability test with a down comforter, and 350 thread count Egyptian cotton sheets. Maybe it's time to go back to the water-bed, built in sprinklers ? : )
David Perry commented:
Thanks for those posts. A couple of quick responses: The federal government says that a new mattress flammability law will save hundreds of lives. So I think that is a real issue. Good for everyone that the beds will be adding FR protection. On the innovation issue, it is easy to say the big guys with financial owners aren't innovating, but their products usually set the sales pace in the industry. They must be giving consumers and retailers what they want, judging by consumer response. Anyone else want to weigh in on these issues? -David
Vegas: just SHOW commented:
I enjoyed your article, nice recap for the overview of what transpired for the week. But, what changed for the industry? One mfg brought back their old advertising, (that's not new), another mfg released an expensive bed (that is certainly not new). Seems that ever since all the major players have become a Capital Investment house, all the newness and creativity has left the industry, and it is just a big SHOW. When the curtain is raised, all the big boys have done is figure out how to get another $.05 of EBITDA out of every bed. Looks like a good time for the Non-S's to make some advancement and grow their business, by offering what the consumers, and retailers want. Some people need to listen to the consumers, not just the board of directors. * No, I do not work for any bedding manufacturer, - just my point of view on the industry.
Sleeping, but Tired commented:
Don't more people die each year due to sleep deprivation related accidents; than open flames? By the time a mattress is close to the flame, all the bedding, carpet, comforter etc would be engulfed. Let's look at the real issues for consumers, not just the high publicity scare tactic price raising strategy.
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