Bedding manufacturer Eclipse International and its partner Blue Ocean Sleep LLC have announced the March opening of two Van Vorst-branded retail stores in China that will carry American-made bedding.
The Van Vorst Studio stores will be run and managed by Van Vorst Partners Ltd. of China, a new entity formed for this venture. The first two dedicated stores will be located in Changhsha and Shenzhen, two large Chinese cities with burgeoning luxury goods markets.
The 4,000-square-foot stores are part of an overall strategy to grow the Van Vorst luxury mattress brand in China, a news release said. There also are plans to implement an e-commerce platform for the brand.
“The Van Vorst brand offers an aspirational look, feel and design that can only be told through a high-end retail experience,” said Stuart Carlitz, president and chief executive officer of Eclipse, based in North Brunswick, New Jersey. “The Van Vorst Studio stores will allow us to offer that dedicated luxury experience for discriminating consumers.”
Stores will floor 14 Van Vorst mattress designs, all manufactured in Eclipse’s New Jersey factory and shipped to China. The high-end line is expected to have strong appeal in China, where consumers have a healthy appetite for American-made goods, according to a company news release.
“In addition to the branded stores, we will target Asian retailers that are tired of the commoditization of bedding and want to address an upscale, affluent consumer,” said Mike Malkiewicz, president and founder of Blue Ocean Sleep, with headquarters in Sacramento, California. “We’ll be delivering made-in-America product that is completely different for the Asian market that will speak to consumers looking for a luxurious sleep experience.”
Eclipse and Blue Ocean Sleep partnered in April 2017 to resurrect the historic Van Vorst mattress brand. Since then, it has been introduced by licensee Luxury Sleep in Malaysia and Singapore through Australia-based retail giant Harvey Norman. The new China initiative will expand the Van Vorst brand further into Asia.
Blue Ocean Sleep owns the Van Vorst name, and Eclipse owns the rights to license the brand worldwide.
