Type Subsidiary Products Bedding Founded 1976 | Industry Retail Website 1800mattress.com | |
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Founder Napoleon and Kay Barragan Headquarters Town of Oyster Bay, New York, United States Motto leave off the last S for savings Parent organizations Mattress Firm, Steinhoff International | ||
1800Mattress.com (formerly known as 1-800-Mattress, Dial-a-Mattress and Dial-a-Mattress Operating Corps) is an American bedding retailer headquartered in Hicksville, New York and famous for its ads that used the slogan "leave off the last S for savings" (since the word "mattress" has 8 letters and only 7 are necessary for a phone number).
History
1800mattress.com was founded as Dial-A-Mattress in 1976 by Napoleon Barragan who got the idea as he saw an ad for Dial-A-Steak, a business that sold meat over the telephone while working in a furniture store. From its beginnings as a basement operation, 1979 saw the first Dial-A-Mattress ads on television and in October 1988, Dial-A-Mattress started promoting their toll-free 800 number in broadcast ads. Having quickly eclipsed the furniture store where Barragan originally worked, the company went national in 1994 and later the name was changed to 1-800-Mattress corresponding with the familiar "1-800-Mattress" jingle written by Andy Vallario, the President and chief creative officer of Media Results, Inc. Part of the company's growth was spurred by referrals and a familiarity with the brand, largely due to the catchy jingle and brand awareness.
In 2005, near the company's peak when it was the leading bedding telemarketing company in the US, 1800mattress had more than 300 employees with annual sales in excess of $100 million. It had nearly 50 showrooms and 250 distributors nationwide. On March 23, 2009, 1-800-Mattress filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection pending a proposed merger with former rival, Sleepy's and later that year the merger was completed and 1-800-Mattress officially became 1800Mattress.com. In 2015, Sleepy's was acquired from Mattress Firm for $780 million. While Sleepy's retail stores became Mattress Firm, 1800Mattress.com still exists to this day.