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Sealy, Texas, is a small town just outside of Houston. It was the home
of Daniel Haynes, a cotton gin builder, who began making cotton-filled
mattresses for his friends and neighbors in 1881.
He went on to invent a machine that compressed cotton for use in mattresses,
receiving a patent for his invention in 1889. His mattress became so popular
that he sold patent rights to people in other markets, who also began building
the product that, at the time, was known as the "Mattress from
Sealy."
In 1906, Haynes sold all of his patents and knowledge to a Texas
Edwards placed Sealy mattress ads in
company that took the name
"Sealy." It was at this time that a young advertising executive named
Earl Edwards launched Sealy on the road to national prominence.
The Saturday
Evening Post and Ladies' Home Journal.
Edwards ensured that Sealy registered its name, developed a trademark, and gave
Sealy the slogan "Sleeping on a Sealy is like sleeping on a cloud."
Edwards' next idea was to be a pivotal step in Sealy's evolution. He felt that
more production facilities, in various locations, would be key to Sealy's
expansion, but knew the company didn't have the capital to do so itself. So he
followed Coca-Cola's lead and sought licensees.
By 1920, Sealy had 28 licensed plants and was the first mattress company to
establish a licensing program.
Business flourished until the Great Depression, when mattress sales drastically
declined. Sealy might have gone under, but, spurred on by Earl Edwards, the
strongest Sealy licensees, including The Ohio Mattress Company, pooled their
resources, paid off the debt of the licensing company, and created what was to
become known as Sealy, Incorporated. The 1930s were tough, but these determined
licensees survived and, in fact, introduced a major new product at the same
time -- the Button-Free mattress.
In 1950, Sealy introduced its first
Sealy Posturepedic brand mattress, the
only mattress in the industry that focused on the importance of correct back
support.
The 1960s saw Sealy commission the first major research study to define the
profile of the Sealy Posturepedic consumer. In 1967, Sealy Posturepedic TV
commercials ran during prime time -- on network television. Another first for the
industry.
The 1970s brought major product developments and refinements. Sealy
Posturepedic bedding became high-tech with programmed coils for increased
support. At the same time, Sealy box springs became known as foundations, due
to the development of the torsion bar module.
The end of the 1980s saw the introduction of the industry's newest innerspring
innovation -- Sealy's PostureTech Coil, now used in all Sealy Posturepedic
mattresses. It is highlighted by a patented Sensory ArmT feature that senses
and cushions movement, then responds with increasing support ... correct
support. The decade also saw an end to decades of lawsuits between Sealy,
Incorporated, and one of its largest licensees -- The Ohio Mattress Company, a
publicly traded corporation. Following the settlement of those lawsuits, all
but one domestic Sealy licensee were consolidated under The Ohio Mattress
Company.
In April 1989, Sealy was taken private in a leveraged buyout (LBO). In 1997 a
team of senior executives of the firm joined with Bain Capital in acquiring the
Company. The Company today operates as a privately held corporation.
Sealy decided to expand its international horizons in 1995, with the objective
of increasing its owned and operated presence in foreign markets. At that time,
a new International Division was formed to assess worldwide opportunities while
developing a team to execute this global strategy. Historically, Sealy had
entered into contracts with independent licensees for manufacturing and
marketing the Sealy brand abroad. There are licensees operating in Australia, Bahamas,
Israel, Jamaica, Japan,
New Zealand, South Africa, Thailand
and the United Kingdom.
In 1995, direct export business began to South Korea. And in 1996, Sealy
began manufacturing and selling in Mexico.
In 2005 Sealy launched a new product.
TrueForm by Sealy Posturepedic made of
memory-foam that forms to your body position for a deep, re-energizing sleep.
SEALY POSTUREPEDIC FEATURES
- Provides advanced pressure point relief
- Absorbs and redistributes pressure from your body weight
- Delivers orthopedically correct support
- Senses body motion and responds with increased support
- Reduces tossing and turning
- Offers unsurpassed support, long-lasting comfort, and unmatched
durability
- Forms a solid perimeter around the bed and locks into the
Posturepedic Innerspring
- Features patented modules that flex when pressure is exerted
- Absorbs the shock of weight and motion
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