Done Deal: Serta merges with retail up-start
The merger between a legacy mattress company and a fast-growing, direct-to-consumer brand has been completed.
Serta Simmons Bedding and Tuft & Needle have finalized their previously announced merger. Tuft & Needle’s direct-to-consumer features will be integrated across SSB’s household name brands, which include Serta, Beautyrest, Simmons and Tomorrow.
With this merger, “customer-centric innovations will become the standard” for the entire SSB house of brands, the company said, and value-add services will be developed and piloted for its key retail partners. By accelerating its direct-to-consumer reach and capabilities, SSB said it “will continue to lead in transforming the industry to one that is customer focused.”
Tuft & Needle co-founders JT Marino and Daehee Park have been appointed to expanded roles within SSB. Marino was named chief strategy officer; Park was appointed chief growth officer. Both report to the CEO of SSB, Michael Traub.
"We are excited to merge with Tuft & Needle to create the number one customer-centric sleep company with the broadest reach, best-in-class manufacturing and over 150 years of experience," said Traub.
The merger occurs as Tuft & Needle and other online upstarts such as Casper and Leesa have taken share away from Serta and other traditional mattress companies by offering generous return policies and free, bed-in-a-box deliveries. Tuft & Needle, which was founded in 2012, sells mattresses, bedding and bed furniture online. Similar to Casper, it has also entered the physical space. It has stores in Scottsdale and Gilbert, Arizona, and Seattle, with a location due to open later this year in Kansas City.
"We have opened a new chapter in the mattress industry," said Marino. “Over the coming months, we will begin to showcase to our customers and retail partners key changes in how we operate and go to market. Also, we will offer retail partners new services and tools to support their success in the evolving market. SSB is clearly taking a strong industry-leading position by recognizing the future as delivering best-in-class experiences for customers wherever they choose to shop.”
Serta Simmons Bedding and Tuft & Needle have finalized their previously announced merger. Tuft & Needle’s direct-to-consumer features will be integrated across SSB’s household name brands, which include Serta, Beautyrest, Simmons and Tomorrow.
With this merger, “customer-centric innovations will become the standard” for the entire SSB house of brands, the company said, and value-add services will be developed and piloted for its key retail partners. By accelerating its direct-to-consumer reach and capabilities, SSB said it “will continue to lead in transforming the industry to one that is customer focused.”
Tuft & Needle co-founders JT Marino and Daehee Park have been appointed to expanded roles within SSB. Marino was named chief strategy officer; Park was appointed chief growth officer. Both report to the CEO of SSB, Michael Traub.
"We are excited to merge with Tuft & Needle to create the number one customer-centric sleep company with the broadest reach, best-in-class manufacturing and over 150 years of experience," said Traub.
The merger occurs as Tuft & Needle and other online upstarts such as Casper and Leesa have taken share away from Serta and other traditional mattress companies by offering generous return policies and free, bed-in-a-box deliveries. Tuft & Needle, which was founded in 2012, sells mattresses, bedding and bed furniture online. Similar to Casper, it has also entered the physical space. It has stores in Scottsdale and Gilbert, Arizona, and Seattle, with a location due to open later this year in Kansas City.
"We have opened a new chapter in the mattress industry," said Marino. “Over the coming months, we will begin to showcase to our customers and retail partners key changes in how we operate and go to market. Also, we will offer retail partners new services and tools to support their success in the evolving market. SSB is clearly taking a strong industry-leading position by recognizing the future as delivering best-in-class experiences for customers wherever they choose to shop.”