OTTAWA — Canada's capital city is also one of its most competitive markets. Not only Canada's seat of government and host to its diplomatic corps, it's a university town. It's also Canada's answer to California's Silicon Valley — a high-tech haven that's home to people whose income is substantially higher than the national average.
Every major bedding retailer in the country has a presence: Sears Canada, The Brick and Leon's as well as Sleep Country Canada. And over the bridge spanning the Ottawa River into Hull, Quebec, the competition gets stiffer with the presence of Brault et Martineau.
But for the past 25 years, Mattress Mart has built a solid following based on the simple premise that it is the mattress expert with the highest levels of service to be found anywhere in the city.
John Spence, founder, owner and president, started his business in 1976 after working at both Sears Canada and the original Bad Boy Furniture Warehouse. "I couldn't believe how many mattresses they were selling," he recalled.
Indeed, he founded Mattress Mart long before the bedding specialist concept became popular. "We're definitely one of the originals," he said.
From that single store, Mattress Mart has become a regional chain with six outlets — each averaging 5,000 square feet of selling space. The focus is on five brands — Sealy, Serta, Kingsdown, King Koil and Spring Air — although it does sell Simmons in the Kingston store as well.
Keys to Mart's success
First, each one of Spence's people is a mattress expert, undergoing intensive and constant training as part of the job. "Our salespeople don't work on commission — they get salary and a bonus — and a lot of them have been with us since the late 1970s and early '80s," Spence said.
Maintaining a stable staff also has been a key factor in Mattress Mart's success. Spence's right- hand man, Mike Bernier, who's now vice president, began working in the warehouse part-time while still in high school. "I think about five or six of our salesmen started off as delivery drivers," Spence said.
This loyal and long-serving staff also works in bright, clean stores that are well accessorized and merchandised. "We redecorate our stores every two or three years," Bernier said.
Supporting this dedicated staff and those beautiful stores is a commitment to service.
"What we try to do is model ourselves after the department stores by offering both fast delivery and good service," Spence said. Good service also means having bilingual staff members at least three of their Ottawa-area stores, including Gatineau.
Service involves such things as a willingness to fix things quickly. "There's almost nothing we won't do to keep customers happy," Bernier said. "We also have a fleet of five delivery trucks working seven days a week."
Even though bedding vendors have almost perfected quick-ship, Mattress Mart remains one of the few stocking dealers, refusing to be caught without an item in its line-up. "We maintain an inventory of at least 3,000 pieces," Spence said.
The retailer knows these things work because every customer is surveyed upon making a purchase. The data show that more than 50% of Mattress Mart customers are referrals from other satisfied customers or are repeat clients. "They like our service so they keep coming back," Bernier said. "People expect a lot of service — the customers in this city are very demanding, but we're getting a lot of repeat business."
An approach that works
Still, bedding remains an advertising-driven business, and Mattress Mart is an aggressive promoter, primarily in newspapers. In addition to buying full pages in local French language newspapers, it also buys both the Ottawa Citizen and the Ottawa Sun every week, two of the most expensive buys in Canada. "We promote relentlessly, 52 weeks a year," Spence said.
Mattress Mart gets high marks from its suppliers for its approach to the business.
"Mattress Mart is a truly unique operation in that the company's philosophy includes not only intensive product knowledge but maximum service while being extremely competitive," said Hugh Owen, president of Owen & Co./Kingsdown Canada.
"They're specialists in this business, and they have a wide assortment that speaks to both their dedication and their dominance as bedding retailers," said Gary Baskerville, vice president of sales and marketing for Bedford Furniture/King Koil. "We're happy to do business with them because they exemplify what a sleep specialist should do."
Spence is looking to grow, but that will be slow and steady. The only city in his immediate sights is Belleville, Ontario, slightly west of Kingston.
Even though business has been tough in recent months, Mattress Mart believes it has what it takes to thrive as the new year begins.
Mattress Mart at-a-glance
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Founded: In 1976 by John Spence, president.
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Key executives: Mike Bernier, vice president, and Joanne Creighton, sales manager.
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Number of stores: 1 in Gatineau, Quebec; 1 in Kingston, Ontario; and 4 in Ottawa.
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Number of employees: 45 (full- and part-time).
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Web site: www.mattressmart.ca
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Key suppliers: Sealy Canada, Serta Montreal, Owen & Co./Kingsdown Canada, Spring Air Canada, Bedford Furniture Inds./King Koil, and Simmons Canada (Kingston only).
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Average store size: 5,000 square feet.
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| Mattress Mart's flagship store in Ottawa. |
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| The brain trust of Mattress Mart: Mike Bernier, left, vice president; Joanne Creighton, sales manager; and, John Spence, president. |
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| Mattress Mart is a frequent advertiser, taking full pages every week in the Ottawa Citizen, one of the most expensive media buys in Canada. |
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