Company taps former Serta president for CFO
By Alan Wolf, YSN
Corsicana Mattress Company has emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy after four months with a new owner, a veteran CFO and a strengthened balance sheet in tow.
Blue Torch Finance, which had been a majority owner in partnership with two other private equity firms, acquired the top-five bedding business last month in exchange for $125 million in debt forgiveness under a court-approved agreement reached in August.
In a statement, Corsicana CEO Eric Rhea said a restructuring under the new ownership has enabled the vendor to “emerge from Chapter 11 as a stronger company with the ability to build on its longstanding foundation as the nation’s largest private retail mattress manufacturer.”
At the time of the bankruptcy filing in June, the CEO said the Chapter 11 reorganization and pre-arranged purchase agreement would allow it to renegotiate contracts, flatten the organization, drive greater operational efficiency and refocus on core customers.
With Blue Torch solely behind it, Rhea said the value-priced mattress maker has now “strategically defined our footprint within key distribution channels to serve our customers better.” Among those customers is AVB’s Furniture Technology Source (FTS), which forged a new partnership with Corsicana last spring, bringing BrandSource members an aggressive program of rebates, bonuses, co-op funding and product discounts.
See: FTS Partners with Corsicana Mattress
“We sincerely appreciate our loyal customer base and strategic suppliers,” Rhea added. “Corsicana remains highly focused on providing our customers with exceptional service and products.”
In other Corsicana news, the company has named bedding business veteran Sally Erickson executive VP and CFO. She joins the vendor following a six-year-stint at Serta Simmons Bedding, where she most recently served as president of Serta. Prior to that, she spent 17 years at what is now Tempur Sealy International in a series of senior finance positions.
“Sally brings to Corsicana an extensive understanding of our industry, and experience with all of the financial objectives we plan on achieving over the years to come,” Rhea said. Added Erickson, “Corsicana has historically been a lean and agile company that is the leader in an important segment of our industry. I am excited to be a part of the senior leadership team and share in its vision and goal of repositioning the company to even greater success in that segment.”
Hat tip to Home Furnishings Business and the Corsicana Daily Sun.
