USA Today reported on Thursday, 30 August that a new lawsuit is escalating the feud between Tempur-Sealy and Mattress Firm after the latter ended its contract last year to sell Tempur-Pedic mattresses in its more than 3,300 US stores. In court papers, Tempur-Sealy accused Mattress Firm of “conspiring” to sell products that bear a strong resemblance to its mattresses and “copying the look and feel of the entire Tempur-Pedic brand and consumer experience.” Tempur-Sealy goes on to say that “Mattress Firm’s products, and the environment in which MF is selling them, are so strikingly similar to Tempur-Pedic’s products and sales environment that consumers will inevitably be confused and harmed,” adding that “Consumers will incorrectly believe that MF is still an authorized seller of Tempur-Pedic products when it is not.”
Tempur-Sealy, which has faced declining sales since losing the Mattress Firm deal, demanded that the Court take action to block its rival from selling the Therapedic products.
Mattress Firm has closed hundreds of stores over the last year and is said to be considering bankruptcy, according to a Reuters report Among other issues, the company is grappling with the fallout from an intense competition with online bed-in-a-box rivals such as Casper and the consequences of heavy discounting.
