The mattress industry has high hopes for the year’s last major holiday: Black Friday/Cyber Monday.
Bedding executives attending the recent High Point Market said that holiday has gained in importance in recent years and is now one of five major “tent-pole” holidays for mattresses, joining Presidents Day, Memorial Day, July Fourth and Labor Day in that elite lineup. Those holidays feature major advertising campaigns and strong values that drive traffic and spur mattress sales, the executives said.
“Black Friday brings more shoppers into the market,” said Frank Hood, CEO of Kingsdown, who was in High Point to celebrate the debut of Kingsdown’s Margaritaville mattress line, part of Hooker Furnishings’ major Margaritaville launch. “Black Friday rivals Labor Day, and I bet it will outrun it eventually.”
“Black Friday and Cyber Monday have become a major mattress event,” said Gerry Borreggine, Therapedic’s CEO. “Now that mattresses are widely available in a box, our industry can be a part of that Cyber Monday event.”
Mattress resource Saatva is expecting the Black Friday/Cyber Monday holiday to be one of the strongest holidays of the year, officials said.
Jonah Nelson, director of brand experience for Bedgear, said that Memorial Day and Labor Day remain the most important holidays for mattresses, but said Black Friday is on the ascent. “Black Friday has grown in significance over the last several years,” he said.
Magniflex is getting ready for a big Black Friday holiday, said Ian Hays, vice president of sales. “From a promotional point of view, we treat Black Friday like Labor Day and Memorial Day as one of the big holidays,” he said.
“We see a bump in sales on Black Friday,” noted Derek Leishman, national sales director at Mlily. “That holiday is more important to brick-and-mortar retailers in many categories, including mattresses.”
He said consumers today are “holding out for holiday promotions” like those they see on Black Friday and at other big holiday events.
Richard Fleck, president of Paramount Sleep, said Black Friday has moved up in importance on the list of major bedding events throughout the year.
“Labor Day is still No. 1,” he said, “but Presidents Day and Black Friday are right there. Memorial Day has dropped off in importance. Veterans Day is now the kickoff for Black Friday. Those two holidays create a mega holiday.”
Nowadays, he said, Black Friday is a “massive” sales event.
Fleck said the mattress industry needs more events like that and noted that some retailers are succeeding with customer appreciation events that can create as much excitement as holiday sales.
“Black Friday has become a major bedding holiday,” added Mark Quinn, senior vice president at Shifman. “Major retailers have put a focus on bedding during that holiday, and the bedding industry has hitched its wagon to that event, creating a sales opportunity for the industry.”
Chris Taheny, vice president of national accounts and business development at Cariloha, said Black Friday is a notable holiday because consumers are in a spending mood for that event. “Consumers are intent on spending money for that holiday,” he said. “It is a hugely important time for shopping.”
He said that Black Friday is becoming a more significant event for mattress sales and is now on par with Presidents Day in importance for mattress retailers.
The executives believe that Black Friday/Cyber Monday sales will enable the industry to finish 2025 on an upbeat note. But they note that the year has been a challenging one for retailers overall.
