Mattress firm’s hard landing

MATTRESS Firm Inc., the largest mattress retailer in the US, filed for bankruptcy protection on Friday, saying its rapid expansion of stores in recent years – with locations often close to each other – resulted in “cannibalisation” of sales.

The Houston-based company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in federal court, saying it plans to close up to 700 US stores as part of its reorganisation plan.

The company has more than 3200 stores and more than 9800 employees in the US and in recent years had aggressively expanded its retail footprint.

In court documents, Mattress Firm said the company’s previous management team had made several miscalculations as it rebranded more than 1300 stores it had bought from competitors in the past two years.

“While these acquisitions allowed (Mattress Firm) to achieve ... presence in markets where they previously had little to no presence, they also led to ‘cannibalisation’ of sales,” the company said.