Endy has become the latest digital pure-play brand to enter physical stores.
Through a partnership with home furnishings retailer Urban Barn, the recently acquired bed-in-a-box company has opened showrooms in 37 stores across the country.
In a press release, Endy CEO Mike Gettis described the move as expanding the company’s reach and enabling an “omni-channel shopping experience” for customers, allowing prospective bed buyers to experience the mattresses first hand before ordering online. The company is handing out promotional codes to customers who visit in-store that can be redeemed for online orders.
Founded in 2015, the direct-to-consumer startup was purchased by Sleep Country Canada in November in a deal worth just shy of $89 million. Both companies are being run separately, and Endy said at the time of the acquisition that there were no plans to bring its products to Sleep Country stores.
In a recent interview with strategy, Sleep Country’s chief business development officer, Stewart Schaefer, noted the number of bed-in-a box companies that have recently come full circle, entering the physical space after having launched as online pure-play operators.
American competitor Casper, for instance, has begun opening its own “sleep shops” in Canada, with plans to add a Canadian headquarters in the near future. Prior to the stand-alone launch, Casper also partnered with traditional furniture, decor and home retailers to give its products a physical presence for those who wanted to try the mattress first, with displays in stores like Hudson’s Bay, EQ3 and Indigo.
Schaefer said the Endy acquisition would help both companies benefit from their respective strengths – digital and physical retail, respectively – while continuing to operate more of less independently of one another.