Press Releases
January 15, 2007 - Princeton, NJ
AirTouch by Therapedic, a new entry into the adjustable air mattress field
AirTouch by Therapedic, a new entry into the adjustable air mattress field, is being readied for a Las Vegas preview showing at the upcoming market at Mandalay Bay.
Therapedic will be unveiling two of the three numbers in the AirTouch line at this Vegas market.
The product has been in development and production for over a year, said Jeffrey Sherman, Therapedic Chairman of the Board. However, Sherman claims the finished product will be worth the wait.
“When you are dealing with mechanics and moving parts, it complicates the production process and makes for a slower development track,” said Sherman. “The machinery and mechanics complicate any production problem that occurs along this process. Consequently, we needed to be deliberate and very careful when we brought this product to market,” he said.
Unlike other bedding brands that have brought air mattresses to the market, Therapedic decided to go a different route when they delved into this category.
“We didn’t seek out the typical mattress component suppliers,” said Sherman. “We went straight to a plastics manufacturer, which had been serving the medical community with adjustable air sleep surfaces for use in hospitals and therapy clinics,” he said.
“We wanted a product that was designed to provide a discernable, and superior, difference to any other air mattress on the market,” said Sherman.
“We think we did that with AirTouch,” he added.
Therapedic announced that there will be three AirTouch models – The Cumulus, The Stratus, and The Cirrus. The line is intended to be priced between $1,999 and $2,999, said Gerry Borreggine, Therapedic president and CEO.
“This product line is not for every retailer,” said Borreggine. “Not everyone is able to sell $3,000 sleep sets. However, those who have a market for this product and these price points will be able to show air sleep sets that are visibly superior to that of the market leader’s models,” he added.
“There are noticeable differences between ours and theirs,” said Borreggine. “And, those differences come by way of superior features and benefits that a retail salesperson can easily communicate to a consumer at the point-of-sale,” he added.
For instance, the market leader’s bed has two adjustments at $1,999 – right side adjustment, and left side adjustment, said Borreggine. The AirTouch model at that price has six adjustments – a shoulder adjustment; a lumbar adjustment; and a hip adjustment; all three for each side.
“Each sleeper has three times more flexibility in customizing their firmness and comfort on the AirTouch sleep set,” said Borreggine.
The market leader, also, has had difficulty with mold and fungus in their beds. Currently, there is a class-action suit pending against that manufacturer due to consumer claims of mold spores growing inside their mattresses.
This is because the market leader uses vulcanized rubber to manufacture their air bladders, said Rick Feingold of SC Plastics, the manufacturer of the AirTouch adjustable bladder and air pump.
“AirTouch is using a vinyl material for the bladder, which is totally resistant and impervious to mold or breakdown,” said Feingold.
“It will give our dealers peace of mind to know that when they sell an AirTouch adjustable sleep set, they won’t have the worries of how it will hold up in the consumer’s home,” added Borreggine.
“We tested the product under extreme conditions, and it held up,” Feingold added.
Therapedic has taken care to insure that the product we are bringing to market will be solid, said Borreggine.
“We wanted our retailers to not only be able to compete in this category, but we wanted them to be able dominate it with the product we are giving them,” Borreggine said.
With AirTouch, we think we have the best air product in the marketplace, opined Borreggine.
“We’re confident our retail partners will agree,” he added.
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