Two competing mattress companies are trying to stake a claim to a growing retail area in northeast Wichita.

Commercial building permits have been pulled for Mattress Firm and Denver Mattress Co. locations less than a mile from each other along the North Greenwich corridor.

The Law Co. Inc. has a $185,000 permit for a commercial alteration to Suite 100 of the strip center at 2564 N. Greenwich in front of the Academy Sports near K-96 and Greenwich. The 13,500-square-foot strip center will be called Wichita Crossing, according to an online property listing.

Denver Mattress, meanwhile, is beginning its Wichita expansion and plans to locate a 4,300-square- foot store in a Greenwich-facing strip center in next to Chili’s in the Regency Lakes development, which is southwest of the K-96-Greenwich interchange.

Bar-Te & Associates Inc. has pulled a commercial alteration permit valued at $158,000 for a tenant finish at 2413 N. Greenwich. Denver Mattress will be in Suite 121 of that development, according to the permit.

Both projects are part of larger expansion plans for the two mattress companies.

Another permit has been pulled for a 3,450-square-foot Denver Mattress at 10240 W. 29th Street North. That’s in the strip center InSite Real Estate Group is developing in front of the Sam’s club near 29th and Maize Road.

Bar-Te & Associates has pulled a commercial building permit valued at $144,000 for that project. Denver Mattress will be in Suite 112 of that development, according to the permit.

The Greenwich and 29th Street sites will be the second and third Wichita locations for Denver Mattress. The company’s first Wichita location is at 555 S. Hoover, in the Furniture Row shopping center near Kellogg and Hoover.
Mike Lipchik, district sales manager for Denver Mattress, says the locations for the new stores were chosen based on the retail growth in those areas.

“Wichita is city where people tend to shop on their side of town,” he says. “We think there is a population we’re not getting to.”

Lipchik says Nov. 20 is the targeted opening date for the Greenwich Denver Mattress store. The other site, he says, should open in mid to late December.

Mattress Firm (NASDAQ: MFRM), meanwhile, has used more of a shotgun approach for its Wichita expansion, often locating stores within close proximity of each other.

The company has 10 Wichita locations and one in Hutchinson, according to its website. Another store is planned for The Oaks commercial development in Derby.

Original Article


Josh Heck
Wichita Business Journal