The Federal Trade Commission voted unanimously to block Tempur Sealy International Inc.’s proposed $4 billion acquisition of Mattress Firm Group Inc. on Tuesday.
The commission issued an administrative complaint and authorized a lawsuit in federal court to block the acquisition, alleging that Tempur Sealy will have the ability and incentive to suppress competition and raise prices for mattresses for millions of consumers once it acquires Mattress Firm, according to an FTC news release.
The proposed acquisition would merge Tempur Sealy’s manufacturing and supply operations with Mattress Firm’s retail footprint, giving the combined company power at multiple parts of the mattress supply chain, according to the release.
“This deal isn’t about creating efficiencies; it’s about crippling the competition,” said Henry Liu, director of the FTC’s Bureau of Competition, citing concerns about raising prices and potential layoffs.
Tempur Sealy issued a statement after the vote, disagreeing with the complaint. “We appreciate (the FTC’s) efforts to understand the industry and the proposed transaction, but ultimately believe the FTC’s perspective does not reflect all the relevant facts and law,” it states. “… We are confident in the procompetitive rationale for this transaction and look forward to presenting the many benefits of the combination. We believe that a successful litigation process can be completed in the coming months, which would allow us to close the transaction in late 2024 or early 2025.”
Read the full FTC release.
