Black Friday has gained importance over the last several years, particularly for mattress retailers, who are starting to understand the opportunity the holiday presents.
For those retailers who haven’t taken advantage of this sales holiday in the past, bedding manufacturers say that mattress retailers need to be proactive.
“Black Friday has been a crucial holiday to our industry, but with how difficult things have been for the last six weeks, it’s more important than ever that the retail community and their manufacturing partners advertise as aggressively as possible for Black Friday,” said Mike Juoni, VP of sales for FXI.
Eugene Alletto, CEO of Bedgear, said retailers don’t have a choice but to be aggressive this year.
“There’s so much unknown, between freight surcharges, economic uncertainty, a weak dollar in China and Vietnam, and more,” he said. “Retailers should focus on a few items that are selective and have significant value so they can offer aggressive pricing.”
Aside from being another major holiday that can bring people into the store, Black Friday particularly presents an opportunity to lead with accessories.
“Black Friday is gaining importance for bedding retailers because they are realizing pillows and accessories are giftable,” said Derek Leishman, national sales director of Mlily.
He said retailers should be as aggressive as they can be. He also said they should lean into sales and promotions and offer the best deals they can.
Richard Fleck, president of Paramount, agrees that retailers should be super aggressive, as October doesn’t have a sales holiday, making Veterans Day and Black Friday the last chance for retailers to win big with sales.
“Some retailers are starting sales on Veterans Day and running them until the day after Black Friday to extend the sales period,” Fleck said. “This way they can capitalize on pent-up demand.”
Gerry Borreggine, CEO/president of Therapedic Worldwide, said the industry needs to turn things around, and that history has proven that emotions propel business.
“Hiding doesn’t help,” he said. “Going dark doesn’t help. But promotions stir the pot.”
Speaking of emotions, does the end of the election cycle mean that people will be more comfortable buying bedding?
Most executives say no, but there is a chance, according to others.
“I always like when the election cycle ends, regardless of the outcome,” Borreggine said. “People feel like there’s closure in some way.”
Alletto offers that Democrats could start spending more, and that Republicans likely won’t stop spending.
“If consumers feel a positive shift, they will be more likely to go out and shop,” he adds.
Juoni said that no matter how contentious an election may seem, once its over it frees up mental space for the consumer and advertising space for retailers.
“I do believe there will be some kind of recovery from our industry from where it’s been over the last six weeks,” Juoni said. “Of course, that doesn’t have anything to do with the larger economic pressures like fuel prices and general inflation.
However, some are not convinced that the end of the election cycle will change anything.
“The instability is still there, and people want confidence,” said Leishman. “Plus, people still don’t have the extra cash to buy a high-ticket item.”
Fleck said midterms won’t bring clarity, but rather frustration.
“Housing hasn’t gotten better, and interest rates went up,” he explained. The frozen market will continue, and a potential rate increase of 60-70% by the feds will hurt more.”
Despite mixed opinions about how the end of the election will affect the industry, executives are united in their thinking that retailers need to step things up for Black Friday and end the year’s last sales holiday with a bang.
