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Sealy CEO delivers message: Don't count this company out
May 30, 2012
Larry Rogers and I wrapped up our talk the other day, one that covered ground no Sealy leader had faced in four decades: Sealy's fall from the top spot in the U.S. mattress market.
Now the gracious Rogers was walking me out to my car at Sealy's headquarters in Archdale, N.C. The friendly receptionist gave him a weather report as we neared the door: A storm was in the forecast.
Considering our discussion, I wondered if that was an ill omen. But Rogers had an optimistic outlook. Despite receiving the sobering news that Serta had unseated Sealy last year atop the domestic mattress industry, Rogers saw plenty of opportunities ahead for Sealy.
He acknowledged that Sealy was "disappointed" to learn that Serta has risen to No. 1 in Furniture/Today's U.S. mattress rankings. But, in the next breath, he asserted that Sealy remains No. 1 - on the worldwide stage. "It is important to remember," he said, "that we continue to be the No. 1 global bedding producer, with sales of $1.9 billion in 2011, including our company-owned international operations, licensees and joint ventures."
He offered congratulations to Serta on its achievement, but suggested that producer shouldn't get too comfortable in the No. 1 spot. "This is a strong company," he said of Sealy. "People would be wrong to count it out."
Rogers said Sealy had held the No. 1 domestic sales ranking for at least 30 consecutive years. "That's quite a tremendous record. Even the best runner slips once. We'll see what happens," he said.
Rogers has been at Sealy for all of those three decades and he's a big believer in Sealy's growth prospects. He cited numerous reasons for his optimism, among them Sealy's new Optimum gel memory foam line, which is off to a strong start on retail floors, he said. And the Stearns & Foster line is a strong performer too, he added.
Rogers, who has announced his retirement as CEO, said he remains focused on boosting Sealy's business. A search firm is looking for his successor and Rogers described that search as "very active." But he said he remains fully engaged in all facets of Sealy's business.
"I haven't made any plans to pack my bags," he said. "I'm working 75 hours a week. Don't think that the lights are out in this office." Noone has ever accused Rogers of not being a hard worker.
He said he wished he could remain at Sealy long enough to recapture the domestic sales crown, but otherwise voiced few regrets in our hour-long interview. His mission that day had been to make the case that good things lie ahead for Sealy. He made that case with calm professionalism.
Time will tell if he is right.
Posted by David Perry on May 30, 2012 |
Comments (9)
Industries:
Bedding
, Bedding (Themed)
July 20, 2012
In response to:
Sealy CEO delivers message: Don't count this company outLaura commented:
Hi there!!I would love to contribute! I am the deinesgr and owner of The Paisley Pear Frame Co. and am always coming up with fresh ideas around our frames purposely so we can show our clients. I also visit clients homes to help them out with their living spaces.
July 18, 2012
In response to:
Sealy CEO delivers message: Don't count this company outTayang commented:
I think other web site proprietors sluhod take this site as an model, very clean and great user friendly style and design, as well as the content. You’re an expert at this stuff!.
June 20, 2012
In response to:
Sealy CEO delivers message: Don't count this company outOld Blue commented:
I wouldn't count Sealy out. TPX lost 75% of it's market value in 3 months, and Serta is getting flipped less than a month after announcing it's #1 position. Success is a real B*****.
June 5, 2012
In response to:
Sealy CEO delivers message: Don't count this company outChow Mein commented:
"Lin,"
How big is thar ax you got to grind?
The F/T numbers register the US sales, and they are based on audited numbers. F/T is rather transparent in how they determine the rankings.
Your comment was funny, though...
June 5, 2012
In response to:
Sealy CEO delivers message: Don't count this company outLin Meihan commented:
Are there other contests besides "Furniture Today's US Mattress Rankings"? What are the guidelines for one company to climb to the top of "Furniture Today US Mattress Rankings"? Who are the people that make those guidelines, who calculates the final tally guidelines?
Lot of serious responsibility to announce who is #1, #2, etc. in the industry of bedding. And besides #1 in what? money? sales? profits? customer relations? employee relations? eco friendliness? corporate philanthropy? equal opportunity? profit margins? advertising dollars spent at Furniture Today? Best corporate golf game? biggest private jet? Maybe its time for an audit on these very public results and get a clear definition of #1.
Just a thought.
June 4, 2012
In response to:
Sealy CEO delivers message: Don't count this company outsarcastica joebber commented:
restonic is going to let 180 football players sleep on twin s sleeping for 6 ft plus football players on twin matresses we are talking 90% of feet will hang off the end
June 1, 2012
In response to:
Sealy CEO delivers message: Don't count this company outnadine reality commented:
BIG round is up ,the fight done , they sank this company like fbi is sinking the drexelz n hnredonz, down the tubes watch em go...temper pedic is eating their b rkfst n dinner
May 30, 2012
In response to:
Sealy CEO delivers message: Don't count this company outJeff Giagnocavo commented:
A friend the other day sent me the notice from Furniture Today about Sealy winning a marketing award. The friend is outside the business and said pretty neat to see the mattress business win on Madison Ave. My reply was, that seems to be the only place they are winning. Their bitter and very public battle with shareholders leaves a lot to be said for the future of this company. Amongst all the back and forth between share holders and Sealy about their present position there was not one mention of the end user, the customer. Posture-pedic is merely a shadow of its former self. I see ads touting guaranteed handles. Guaranteed Handles! For crying out loud why do you need a guaranteed handle for a one sided bed? Is that what Sealy is left with?
In regards to their recent Effie award what a joke. Madison avenue liked it because it was tongue in check and likely they thought it was "cute". But what did it produce? Certainly not a higher stock price, or increased sales. Hell, I bet not one person at Sealy could correctly determine a ROI on this investment, let alone an ROI for the bed tagger app.
Look at the list of any bankrupt store over the last few years and they include Sealy as a creditor, all of them. Is anyone else paying attention to this. In Sealy's defense they are not alone there about 10 other companies out there that are serial creditors on the bankruptcy list too.
I am not saying that these companies put people out of business but there is a commonality that must be addressed or admitted.
The traditional model is broken, and not worth repairing as consumers aren't looking for what was.
Customers want a product that will hold up, and fix what ails them. Right now Sealy doesn't seem to have that.
May 30, 2012
In response to:
Sealy CEO delivers message: Don't count this company outRobert Fernandez commented:
9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2...
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