Sleep Country Canada Holdings Inc. is a Canadian

mattress A mattress is a large, usually rectangular pad for supporting a lying person. It is designed to be used as a bed, or on a bed frame as part of a bed. Mattresses may consist of a quilted or similarly fastened case, usually of heavy cloth, conta ...

retailer Retail is the sale of goods and services to consumers, in contrast to wholesaling, which is sale to business or institutional customers. A retailer purchases goods in large quantities from manufacturers, directly or through a wholesaler, and t ...

and with over 250 stores operating in

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada, western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on t ...

Manitoba Manitoba ( ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population o ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

New Brunswick New Brunswick (french: Nouveau-Brunswick, , locally ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. It is the only province with both English and ...

Prince Edward Island Prince Edward Island (PEI; ) is one of the thirteen Provinces and territories of Canada, provinces and territories of Canada. It is the smallest province in terms of land area and population, but the most densely populated. The island has seve ...

and

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland". Most of the population are native Eng ...

. In 2006, the company was ranked one of the top 50 companies to work for in Canada by ''

the Globe and Mail ''The Globe and Mail'' is a Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of approximately 2 million in 2015, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on weekdays and Saturdays, although it ...

''. It is best known for its radio

jingle A jingle is a short song or tune used in advertising and for other commercial uses. Jingles are a form of sound branding. A jingle contains one or more hooks and meaning that explicitly promote the product or service being advertised, usually t ...

, "Why buy a mattress anywhere else? Ding!" Sleep Country USA (now called

Mattress Firm Mattress Firm Inc. is an American mattress store chain founded on July 4, 1986. The headquarters of the company is located in Houston, Texas. Business Before its bankruptcy in 2018, the company operated over 3,600 locations in 48 U.S. states. ...

), an unaffiliated company, uses the same jingle.

History

In 1994, the three partners

Christine Magee Christine Magee (born November 7, 1959) is the co-founder and president of Sleep Country Canada. In October 1994, she co-founded the company with Stephen K. Gunn and Gordon Lownds. By 2004, the company had expanded to 89 stores, with over 600 emp ...

Stephen K. Gunn Stephen K. Gunn is Executive Co-Chairman and co-Founder of Sleep Country Canada Inc, which he co-founded with Christine Magee and Gordon Lownds. As of June 2013, the company has 201 stores across Canada and 43 stores in the US ( Sleep America). E ...

and

Gordon Lownds Gordon Lownds (born 1947/48), co-Founder of Sleep Country Canada and Listen Up! Canada, is a successful Canadian entrepreneur. Gord Lownds was born and raised in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy from Yor ...

launched the first four Sleep Country locations in

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

. By 1996, the chain had expanded to

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

with 19 new stores. Growth continued at quick rate. By 2001, the company had 72 stores in six regional markets and an estimated 40% of the market in regions where it operated. In 2003, Sleep Country converted into an

income trust An income trust is an investment that may hold equities, debt instruments, royalty interests or real properties. They are especially useful for financial requirements of institutional investors such as pension funds, and for investors such as retir ...

, and raised nearly in an initial public offering. In January 2006 the company Dormez-vous Sleep Centres Inc. with five stores in

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

. In March 2006 it added 32 stores in the US through an acquisition of Sleep America Inc., a mattress retailer in

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

. On August 14, 2008,

The Canadian Press The Canadian Press (CP; french: La Presse canadienne, ) is a Canadian national news agency headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. Established in 1917 as a vehicle for the time's Canadian newspapers to exchange news and information, The Canadian Pre ...

reported that two Toronto-based investment firms, Birch Hill Equity Partners Management Inc. and Westerkirk Capital Inc., made a friendly takeover offer worth $356 million (CAD) for all the units of the Sleep Country Canada Income Fund, the parent company of Sleep Country Canada. This offer was accepted. In 2015, the company went public again, in an IPO on the

Toronto Stock Exchange The Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX; french: Bourse de Toronto) is a stock exchange located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is the 10th largest exchange in the world and the third largest in North America based on market capitalization. Based in t ...

raising $300 million. Its new ticker symbol was "ZZZ".

References

External links

* {{Mattresses 1994 establishments in British Columbia Retail companies established in 1994 Companies based in Toronto Retail companies of Canada Canadian brands Mattresses Companies listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange 2003 initial public offerings 2008 mergers and acquisitions 2015 initial public offerings