Mattress Firm is involved with a new class action lawsuit in which plaintiff Erica Hampton claims that the retailer sells items on its website at fake discount prices to trick customers into thinking they are getting a bargain
Filed in California federal court, Hampton says in the lawsuit that anyone visiting the website who buys an item on “sale” from a stricken former or regular price is being misled, alleging the item was never listed on the website at the regular price for a substantial time.
These allegedly false reference prices “are inflated prices posted to lure consumers into purchasing items” from Mattress Firm, Hampton claims.
Hampton says she visited the Mattress Firm website in June and chose to purchase a Sealy brand mattress because she believed it was being sold at a 30% discount from the regular price.
The strike-through regular price for the mattress was listed at $799.99 with a sale price of $545.99. Hampton purchased the mattress and believed she was receiving a true discount from the regular price listed on the website.
Ten days after making the purchase, she noticed the same mattress was being sold on the Mattress Firm website for $489.99, a purported 38% discount from the strike-through reference price.
The claim accuses the retailer’s false reference pricing of violating the Federal Trade Commission Act’s prohibitions on “unfair or deceptive acts or practices in or affecting commerce.”
The complaint also asserts claims for violation of California’s Unfair Competition Law, False Advertising Law, Consumer Legal Remedies Act, negligent misrepresentation, fraud and unjust enrichment.
Mattress Firm isn’t the only one being accused of deceptive sales acts, but it highlights an important and prominent issue within the mattress industry: discounts.
For so long, the bedding industry has been a sea of sales and promotional deals that aim to bring customers in. This reinforces the stereotype that mattress salespeople are no better than used car salesmen.
And while it may seem like promotions have become second nature and customers look at prices, see the discount and buy, this class action lawsuit shows that consumers care about more than just the price.
In today’s retail world, consumers need to be able to trust the retailer they are purchasing from. Promotional offers won’t bring in customers if they don’t trust your business. Consumers have more information at their fingertips than ever before, and because of a struggling economy, they are paying more attention to pricing than ever before.
Time will tell if these accusations against Mattress Firm are true and what reparations may be made if they are, but this should be a lesson to the industry about the honesty behind discounts, as well as the frequency.
Promotions are made to be just that — actual discounts that give consumers a deal. The more that promotions are distorted and touted year-round, the more consumers are going to pay attention to what’s real and what’s a deceptive trick.
Our industry doesn’t need any more harmful stereotyping.
