Log In   |  Register Free Newsletter Subscription
Skip navigation
Zibb
Subscribe to Furniture Today
Industry Resources

Bedding Today

RSS

David Perry Bedding Editor Hi! I'm David Perry, the bedding editor for Furniture/Today. This is an online version of my Bedding Today column, which appears weekly in the pages of Furniture/Today. I invite you to take advantage of this blog format to share your comments on the topics that I tackle each week..

My Yahoo

Where should ISPA look for leadership?

David Perry
Posted by David Perry on November 6, 2009

  “This,” the bedding veteran said to me the other day, “will make a good blog: Should the International Sleep Products Assn. look for an association leader for its next president, or should it hire someone from within the bedding industry?”   That is an interesting question, and it is one that is sparking discussion throughout the industry these days. I heard ...... Read More

Comments (0)
Industries: Homepage , Bedding

Is big wave of pent-up demand coming?

David Perry
Posted by David Perry on October 28, 2009

The discussion has been going on for months now, and it has grown stronger as the woes of the mattress industry have grown worse. How much pent-up demand will be unleashed next year in what the International Sleep Products Assn. sees as a solid growth year? Some respected industry analysts see a veritable wave of pent-up demand flooding our industry, sending surges of mattress-starved consumers in ...... Read More

Comments (10)
Industries: Business News , Bedding , Homepage

Death claims vibrant Sealy VP

David Perry
Posted by David Perry on October 26, 2009

In one of those tragic, senseless accidents, an outdoors-loving Sealy vice president was struck and killed this past weekend while he was riding his bicycle in Guilford County, N.C. David Sherman, 55, died instantly when an SUV struck him late Saturday afternoon. Witnesses saw a silver Dodge Durango leave the scene of the accident. I didn’t know Sherman, but those who did described him as a ...... Read More

Comments (5)
Industries: Bedding , Homepage

Eitel answers critics, defends performance

David Perry
Posted by David Perry on October 17, 2009

Former Simmons CEO Charlie Eitel is making a strong defense of the company’s performance under his watch, saying that sales increased substantially and that he built lasting relationships with retailers – and “sold a lot of beds” - by entertaining them on his boats and in his homes. I asked Eitel the other day if he wanted to respond to recent stories in The New York Ti ...... Read More

Comments (26)

Bedding forecast sees big rebound in 2010

David Perry
Posted by David Perry on October 15, 2009

They say the media doesn’t report good news, but I come before you today with three nice-sounding numbers: 7, 12 and 15.   Those are three estimates of how much growth the mattress category will record next year. Yes, you heard us correctly. We said “growth.” That’s not a word that has been heard in Mattressville in recent years.   I found those nice-sounding ...... Read More

Comments (9)

ComforPedic Retail Tour: Good news at Cardis

David Perry
Posted by David Perry on October 9, 2009

PROVIDENCE, R.I. - Good news from the retail trenches: The worst is over.The Cardi brothers - Nick, Ron and Pete - offered that assessment to me while we were all seated (comfortably) in the spacious, spa-like bedding department of their flagship store just outside this historic city. The brothers are the well-known faces of Cardis Furniture, the first stop on this day of the ComforPedic Retail To ...... Read More

Comments (0)
Industries: Business News , Bedding , Homepage

ComforPedic Retail Tour: Ad lessons in Agawam

David Perry
Posted by David Perry on October 8, 2009

AGAWAM, Mass. - The drive to the Simmons factory here from the airport in Hartford, Conn., was vintage New England: Stone fences, stately old homes and beautiful vistas. The colors are changing as autumn invades the Northeast. One thing that hasn’t changed, I learned, is the need for mattress retailers to keep promoting. That point was driven home at the open house the Simmons factory here ...... Read More

Comments (9)
Industries: Business News , Bedding , Homepage

ComforPedic Retail Road Tour a good idea

David Perry
Posted by David Perry on October 7, 2009

HARTFORD, Conn. - Greetings from the capital of the Nutmeg State, a very special place for me to embark on a journey of retail discovery. More on that in a moment.This is my jumping off point for a rendezvous with the ComforPedic Loft Showroom on Wheels, an 18-wheeler that I last saw parked in a dusty Las Vegas parking lot across the street from the World Market Center. That’s where the tou ...... Read More

Comments (2)
Industries: Business News , Bedding , Homepage

NY Times has compelling tale of greed

David Perry
Posted by David Perry on October 5, 2009

The New York Times has published what will probably stand as the definitive account of private equity’s greed in the mattress business. It is the story of the private equity owners who bought and sold Simmons over the years for “ever-rising prices” while burdening the company with growing debt. The coverage begins in the lead position on Page 1: “Buyout Firms Profited A ...... Read More

Comments (27)
Industries: Bedding , Homepage

Low innerspring scores raise no ruckus

David Perry
Posted by David Perry on October 2, 2009

It’s the case of the lion that didn’t roar. I thought the provocative findings of our recent “Rating Sleep Surfaces” study would bring forth howls of protest from the innerspring side of the business, which did not fare well in the study. But I’ve heard very little response to the survey findings. Maybe everyone took some time off after the recent Las Vegas Marke ...... Read More

Comments (16)
Industries: Bedding , Homepage

Simmons sighs in relief as deal announced

David Perry
Posted by David Perry on September 25, 2009

So now we know that those Serta-Simmons rumors were true, sort of. The purchase agreement announced today between Simmons and an investor group led by Ares Management and the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, the owners of Serta, would dramatically change the face of the bedding landscape, sort of. It will create a new No. 1 in the mattress world: Simmons plus Serta is almost $2 billion in sa ...... Read More

Comments (13)
Industries: Bedding , Homepage

Are suppliers too aggressive in Vegas?

David Perry
Posted by David Perry on September 22, 2009

Here’s a novel proposal: Suppliers should only visit mattress showrooms in Las Vegas on Wednesday and Thursday, after retailers have visited the spaces on Monday and Tuesday. A couple of my friends on the manufacturing side of the business think that’s a great idea, especially after they were inundated with suppliers at the recent Las Vegas Market. The main purpose of market, you wil ...... Read More

Comments (8)
Industries: Bedding , Homepage
Next ›
Advertisement
FT Industry Resources module
Advertisement
Showtime Product Submissions
eNewsletters
Furniture Today eDaily
Furniture Today eClassifieds
Bedding Today
Furniture Today Green
Casual Living eWeekly
Home Accents Today eWeekly
Home Accents Today Product Line
Home Textiles Today Extra
Hospitality Furnishings Today
Gifts & Dec Direct
Gifts & Dec Product Wire
Kids Today eWeekly
Playthings Extra



Please read our Privacy Policy

About Us   |   Advertise   |   Site Map   |   Contact Us   |   Subscription   |   Affiliate Links   |   RSS
© 2009 Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Use of this Web site is subject to its Terms of Use | Privacy Policy
Please visit these other Reed Business sites