News release

SYMBOL® MATTRESS LAUNCHING NEW BRAND IDENTITY,
RETAIL-FOCUSED BUSINESS OBJECTIVES AND NEW PRODUCT LINES IN MAJOR LV INITIATIVE

RICHMOND, Va. Jan. 20, 2016—Symbol Mattress is re-introducing itself to retailers in Las Vegas, bringing to the winter market a new brand identity, retail-focused business objectives, several new product lines, plus the first phase in a renovation of its C-1529 showroom.
“We’d like retailers who visit us during the show to be thinking, ‘This is not the Symbol I remember,’” commented Mike McQuiston, company executive vice president.

Among the many changes the producer has made is the development of a modern new logo that’s meant to communicate Symbol’s authenticity and confidence—the result in part of being a self-reliant, vertically integrated bedding organization.

“Our new logo is simpler, cleaner and more memorable,” explained McQuiston. “We believe it expresses the genuineness, integrity and self-sufficiency behind the Symbol brand.”

Accompanying the logo is the new position statement “Your Life, Your Mattress,” which speaks succinctly to the important correlation between a consumer’s quality of life and his/her choice of a mattress.

As part of its new vision, Symbol also has clarified and strengthened its business objectives.

“Because all six of our facilities function under the same operational umbrella, we’ve always been able to build a lot of value into our products,” McQuiston noted. “While the objective has been to deliver the industry’s best bedding values, we’re now going to emphasize Symbol beds that not only are highly saleable and have great looks and feels, but also consistently provide healthy margins to retailers.

“We’re leveraging our strengths in new ways, concentrating our efforts in the higher $799 to $1,599 range, and ensuring that our products deliver highly competitive retail profits at those price points,” he said.

In keeping with that strategy, Symbol is introducing an aggressive new two-bed collection named gen-u-ine, using the phonetic spelling. The new line, which can be made available to stores as roll-pack beds, includes the option of a nine-inch all-foam mattress at $899 or an 11-inch encased-coil version at $1,299.

The step-up model features a washable, stretch-knit top panel that zips off. Dealers also can opt for Cool Max® or wool blend top panels that can be zipped off and laundered.

Shoppers can take either bed home from the store in a Symbol box that day, or the producer will warehouse and ship purchases direct to consumers’ homes for receipt within two to three days.

Symbol, which cuts and sews its own covers, prepares its own component foams and recently installed a roll-pack machine at its Watertown, Wisc. facility, said its motivation for developing and naming the gen-u-ine line was twofold:
“There are lots of marketers out there selling mattresses, but they don’t make mattresses,” explained Mark Jannke, vice president of product development. “We are a genuine producer making genuine products, and we decided to use that attribute to name the line.

“We also believe the name coincides with our new branding direction while enhancing the ability of brick-and-mortar retailers to compete with the expanding number of online mattress resources,” he added.

Also on the company’s Las Vegas agenda are new, high-end looks for its popular, six-model Symbol Signature™ Collection—aesthetics that have been added without raising the original retails from $699 to $1,499.

The Signature series, which includes four models at the top with encased coil-on-coil designs, incorporates multiple layers like latex, pre-compressed cotton, memory foam and various gel-infused foams, depending on the model.

“We not only added upholstery fabrics to the Signature line and gave it a more contemporary profile, but we’re also enabling retailers, at their option, to apply the same looks of our Unite™ collection to the Signature series,” McQuiston said.

A final product launch is a new Symbol Preferred™ encased-coil bed line that’s adjustable-friendly and expected to retail from only $399 to $699.

“It’s difficult to find a quality mattress at those price points that can be used with an adjustable foundation,” Jannke noted. “We wanted to broaden retailer options at those prices while still delivering healthy margins.”

The Symbol Preferred series includes three encased-coil beds that are foam-encased and use a variety of premium layers, including gel-infused foams. The beds feature tack-and-jump quilted stretch-knit covers in navy and white color combinations.

Symbol’s product introductions will be launched in a showroom the company is redesigning in stages to reflect the authenticity and confidence of its brand and company.

“Given all of the changes we’ve made in our identity, brand message, business strategy and products,” McQuiston said, “ultimately we want our Las Vegas space, when completed, to be a true reflection of the new Symbol.”

NOTE: All price points reflect queen retails unless otherwise noted.

FOR MORE INFORMATION:
Susan Ebaugh
Lilly Management Group
630-377-2424, ext. 227
sebaugh@lillymanagement.com

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