In a retail environment challenged by low foot traffic, increased product costs and economic uncertainty, it seems unbelievable to think of a bedding retailer organically opening 30 new stores per year.
However, that’s the ambitious goal Mattress Warehouse has been working toward — and meeting.
It now has a total of 540+ stores nationwide. A little over a year ago, the company completed the acquisition of 73 former Mattress Firm stores and 103 Sleep Outfitters locations. Bill Papettas, CEO of Mattress Warehouse, tells Bedding News Now that this played into the company’s recent growth, but that the company has been on an organic growth trajectory for the past decade.
“Outside of another small acquisition in Tampa with the Bedpro Group, all of our other growth has been organic, growing one market at a time,” he said. “As an organization, we’re staying focused on execution of those new stores, getting them in the right places and entering markets the right way.”
And it’s a difficult real estate market right now. According to Papettas’ research, vacancy rates are at all-time lows, so it’s easy to get bad locations. “We have to be careful, diligent and disciplined in getting the right locations,” he adds.
So what does Papettas contribute Mattress Warehouse’s success to?
“We stay internally focused,” he explains. “You have to be aware of your environment and the macro environment, but keeping the organization internally focused on our mission, values and people. For us it all starts with our people. We in the home office are all there to support the people in the stores, and the people in the stores ultimately support our guests. We try not to get caught up in a lot of the noise that’s out there, and keep everybody focused on executing and controlling the things you can control today.”
While Papettas said this may sound “super basic and boring,” there’s greater wisdom in his words.
“People get caught up in things they can’t control. They get caught up in things that are, you know, outside of their purview and influence. And when you do that, I think you make mistakes,” he adds.
The company’s mission, like many successful retailers in the industry, is improving lives through quality sleep. And Papettas said Mattress Warehouse employees live and breathe that every day.
“We come to work with a purpose, and every guest that comes in has a problem that we’re there to solve,” he said. “We’re not just there to sell rectangles; we’re there to try to help them solve their problems.”
The team operates around four values: teamwork, trust, ownership and persistence.
“Everybody understands how critical that last impression is on delivery, and we try to deliver outstanding service at the very end of the transaction, not just in the store, but even when our drivers are in the guest’s home,” he explained. “That level of teamwork between stores, between departments, is critical to our success. And then when you look at trust, it’s both internal and external. You have to do what you say to the guests, but you also have to do what you say to your people. So that’s important in building a culture that trusts each other, and then builds trust externally with our guests.”
He explained that he wants in-store employees to take ownership and pride in the business they’re in every day. “That’s really clear when you visit the stores that you see that sense of pride and ownership in those four walls. And I think that’s critical.”
For the last of the company’s values, persistence, Papettas offers this sentiment: You can’t lose if you don’t give up.
“That’s a core belief: that as long as you keep moving forward and you get a little bit better every day, you’re not going to give up. You’re going to get to your goals, and that’s the way. Those are the core values that we built the company with and they have contributed to our success. I care deeply about our store teams, and I spend a lot of my time in our stores because they’re the front line.
Mattress Warehouse will open a few new stores this month, and Papetta predicts they will open another 10 stores before the end of the year.
Next year’s goal? 40 stores.
“We opened up a lot of new markets with the Mattress Firm and Sleep Outfitters acquisitions last year, and now it’s time to make our presence in those markets better established and get more real estate interest. That’s our big focus right now.”
