Rave Reviews

Mobile showroom a hit for ComforPedic Loft
By David Perry -- Furniture Today, November 2, 2009
HIGH POINT-The ComforPedic Loft Showroom on Wheels rolled into market here the other day, more than halfway through its 10,000-mile tour of the United States and Canada.

The miles on the 18-wheeler, decorated with ComforPedic Loft signage, are adding up as fast as retail commitments to the new specialty sleep line, officials said.

Scott Smalling, president of Simmons' specialty sleep division, says that virtually every retailer who has seen the ComforPedic Loft line has agreed to floor some of the models.

The new line, which retails from $999 to $1,999, offers key features of the original ComforPedic memory foam line, including quick recovery, consistent comfort and heat dissipation, according to Smalling.

He has been singing the praises of the line to top retailers like R.C. Willey, Nebraska Furniture Mart and Sleepy's, and to mom-and-pop retailers, too. The reaction to the new line, launched at the Las Vegas Market in September, has been very positive, according to Smalling and Butch Webster, who has worked with Smalling since 2005 and is vice president of Simmons' specialty sleep division. He and Smalling are leading the Showroom on Wheels tour.

The two have been shaking up the industry and challenging conventional thinking in the memory foam segment since they joined forces at ComforPedic, an up-and-coming specialty bedding producer acquired by Simmons in 2007. Now they have joined forces on a two-month retail tour that breaks new ground, Simmons officials said.

Simmons President Steve Fendrich, who has more than 25 years of experience in the bedding industry, said he has never seen a retail tour like this one, which utilizes an 18-wheel rig set up as a mobile showroom.

"This is far and away a bigger success than we anticipated," he said. The showroom provides "a pretty unique experience" for retail sales associates, he added.

The tour took on a life of its own as plans began coming together, Fendrich said. The original idea of taking an RV on the road gave way to the mobile showroom, a tractor-trailer whose interior was designed to resemble a loft apartment.

Retailers have been impressed with the showroom, which will hit 31 cities across the U.S. and Canada before the tour's scheduled end in November.

"This is very well done," said Tom Wholley, president of 10-store Better Bedding of East Hartford, Conn. "This trailer is pretty cool."

Smalling said the tour has been a hit.

"We are helping dealers who did not come to the Las Vegas Market get a first-class look at our products," he said. "Also, in these challenging times, we are helping our dealers keep their travel expenses as low as possible. The overall retail reaction to this initiative has been overwhelmingly positive. And the tour has also generated a positive buzz within Simmons through the Tweets I am sending out and the success stories we are sharing internally with our Simmons associates.”
During a recent swing through New England, Smalling and Webster followed the 18-wheeler in a rental car.

Smalling started the national tour in the passenger's seat of the big rig, which is driven by veteran trucker Bill Gibson of Columbus, Ohio-based In Motion Promotion.

The first leg took Gibson and Smalling from Las Vegas to Los Angeles. Then it was north to Sacramento and east to Salt Lake City and Denver. Webster joined the tour in Omaha, Neb.

From New York, the showroom headed south. It arrived in High Point just in time for the opening of the High Point Market last month. Then it was back on the road for a trip to the Simmons campus in Atlanta, followed by a swing through the South and Midwest.

Success With Simmons

The Simmons Bedding ComforPedic Tour began in September 2009 and stopped in U.S. cities from Vegas to Florida to Canada and everywhere in between.

Recently the tour was extended for a 12-week period due to the success of the mobile road show and the impact the tour has had on Simmons sales. The 53' mobile NYC loft on wheels recently stopped in Little Rock, AK and highlighted a significant impact the tour has had on this particular retailers sales.

"Hi Everyone-Wanted to take the opportunity to thank you for selecting the Sleep & Wellness Center at Ashley Furniture Homestore as one of your distinguished partners on your North American Tour to celebrate the official launch of Comforpedic Loft. The energy level the mobile showroom creates is incredible. The Comforpedic Loft Showroom Tour was a game changer for our weekend sales performance. Sleep's most advance technology was the story of the day. Here's a recap: Sleep 24.6% of Overall Sales..$1334.84 Average Ticket. The most interesting thing was the Comforpedic Loft Collection elevated the interest in Comforpedic's established upper models. Saturday's first two sales were CP Mystere King models; one being an adjustable. This set the tone for the weekend. Please let me now when you can arrange to come back for a encore appearance in 2010. Sleep Well." - Tim Hammonds

As IMP continues to work with the Simmons Bedding Company we look forward to providing your company with the same type of results; getting your product in front of your ideal customer. Contact us today to explore the possibilities of your mobile road show!

IMP Visits the CMA Awards

The 43rd Annual Country Music Awards took place on Wednesday, November 11, 2009 and In Motion Promotion was there to entertain during a night of awards.

Rob Hunt, Owner of IMP (right) is pictured with Darius Rucker, lead singer for Hootie and the Blowfish (center) who recently took his career solo and left with New Artist of the Year at the 2009 CMA Awards.

IMP was honored to entertain Simmons Bedding Company at the CMA's, further developing the relationship IMP has begun with Simmons in the past few months. Currently, the Simmons Bedding ComforPedic Line tour is on the move extending their mobile road show tour for another 12 weeks stopping at retailers and Simmons plants across the country. The tour has proved successful with a 98% closing ratio for the ComforPedic Line that Simmons has rolled out this Fall.

For more information on how In Motion Promotion can bring your mobile roadshow to life and travel to the doorsteps of your important buyers or clients, contact us today for more information. We would be happy to speak with you!