sleep train


Tuesday, August 14th, 2012

Sleep Train’s Clothing Drive for Foster Kids Was Huge Success

The West Coast’s #1 Mattress Company Collected 26,084 Articles of Clothing for California Foster Children, Nearly Double Last Year’s Total

Colored jeans, nautical stripes, neon colors and preppy style—this year’s fashion trends are fun, bright and sporty. But for local foster children who often enter foster care with just the clothes on their back, getting dressed and ready to tackle the day isn’t always easy breezy. To assist foster parents and give foster kids the extra confidence they need to succeed in school and at play, Sleep Train recently hosted it’s annual New Clothing Drive for Foster Kids collecting over 26,000 articles of clothing, nearly double last year’s total, including shirts, jeans, jumpers, dresses and packaged undergarments in all sizes – infant to adult. Donations were distributed among the company’s 24 foster care non-profit partners in the state.

“New clothing is a small contribution, but truly makes a huge difference in the lives of foster youth and foster families,” said Jennifer Harper, Director of Development and Marketing, Alternative Family Services. “The monthly stipend foster parents receive allows them to provide basic needs for foster youth. These funds are not able to cover all necessities. A new t-shirt or pair of shorts provides a much needed confidence boost and sense of normalcy for children in such unfamiliar situations.”

For foster children who enter care with little to no belongings of their own, a new clothing item not only brightens their mornings, but shows them their community cares. If you were unable to participate in this drive but would still like to help support foster children, Sleep Train is currently hosting its School Supply Drive for Foster Kids, which aims to give California foster children the tools to succeed in school. A few of the most needed items include backpacks, pens, pencils, notebooks, paper and flash drives and donations can be dropped off at any Sleep Train location. Unable to shop? donate online here: https://secure.sleeptrain.com/donations.aspx and Sleep Train employees will do the shopping for you. Remember that while “Not everyone can be a foster parent, anyone can help a foster child.”

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Wednesday, June 13th, 2012

Ernst & Young announces Sleep Train Founder & CEO Dale Carlsen is the Entrepreneur Of The Year® 2012 Award winner in Northern California

Ernst & Young LLP today announced that Dale Carlsen, Founder & CEO of Sleep Train, the number one mattress store on the West Coast, received the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year® 2012 Award in the Retail and Consumer Products category in Northern California. The award recognizes outstanding entrepreneurs who demonstrate excellence and extraordinary success in such areas as innovation, financial performance and personal commitment to their businesses and communities. Dale Carlsen was selected by an independent panel of judges, and the award was presented at a special gala on June 2nd at The Fairmont San Francisco.

“It’s an honor to receive this prestigious award on behalf of all of our Employee Owners, and be recognized among the nation’s top leaders for building a company that demonstrates continued growth and innovation and fosters strong relationships with our business partners and the greater community,” said Dale Carlsen, founder and CEO of Sleep Train.  “During the past 27 years, Sleep Train has grown from one store and few employees to a multi branded company with more than 255 stores and 1,250 employee owners.  We’ve created the Sleep Train Foster Kids program to have a significant impact on an important social cause, and became the only employee-owned sleep shop in the nation.  I am proud to share this tremendous recognition with my entire team whose support has been both vital and inspiring.”

Now in its 26th year, the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year Program has honored the inspirational leadership of such entrepreneurs as Jeff Bezos of Amazon.com, Michael Dell of Dell Inc., Herb Kelleher of Southwest Airlines, Fred Smith of FedEx, Larry Page and Sergey Brin of Google, Richard Schulze of Best Buy, Andrew Mason of Groupon, Mindy Grossman of HSN, Inc., Reid Hoffman and Jeff Weiner of LinkedIn, and many more.

As a Northern California award winner, Dale Carlsen is now eligible for consideration for the National Entrepreneur Of The Year 2012 Award. Award winners in several national categories, as well as the National Entrepreneur Of The Year Overall Award winner, will be announced at the annual awards gala in Palm Springs, California, on November 17, 2012. The awards are the culminating event of the Ernst & Young Strategic Growth Forum®, the nation’s most prestigious gathering of high-growth, market-leading companies.

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Tuesday, September 6th, 2011

Sleep Train Inspires Area Companies to Help Foster Children Too

The profound success and awareness of the Sleep Train Foster Kids Program has inspired a number of other companies and organizations in the area to support regional foster children too. Collecting important material items and cash to contribute to current Sleep Train drives, area companies and organizations are leveraging Sleep Train’s successful infrastructure and marketing efforts to offer their support for foster children.

This summer alone, Under the Nile, a Milpitas-based cotton apparel company, hosted a drive to support Sleep Train’s annual collection of pajamas, donating 100 pairs of pajamas, including their own donation of 50 100%-organic cotton pajamas, a retail value totaling $1,600. Laptop Lunches, based in Santa Cruz, donated over 500 bento-style lunch boxes for foster kids, which promote healthy, waste-free lunches.

The “Reaching Beyond the Walls” Missions Group at San Quentin State Prison recently donated $1,500 to Sleep Train’s Foster Kids Program. Twenty-five inmates coordinated and participated in the annual Reaching Beyond the Walls Walk-A-Thon on the prison yard, choosing to give the cash to foster children because many of California’s inmates were formerly in foster care. Also, three 3rd grade girls in Napa spearheaded a drive at their elementary school, which collected nearly 700 pairs of shoes and clothing items for foster children. And, the Rowell Ranch Junior Rodeo has been collecting school supplies for foster kids at their August events to support Sleep Train’s School Supply Drive.

“We’re thrilled that our efforts are serving to inspire action from individuals in companies, organizations and institutions to host drives and events to obtain important material items and cash for foster children,” said Dale Carlsen, CEO of Sleep Train. “These children are our future, and quite possibly the most important thing we can do as a community is to show them as a collective that we care and support them as they fight many odds to be successful.”

Sleep Train, the number #1 mattress retailer on the West Coast, started its Foster Kids Program in 2008 and has collected more than 300,000 items and $700,000 in cash for its foster organization partners. The company makes it easy for organization and businesses to contribute to the program with detailed information and resources on its website for “hosting your own drive.” Sleep Train is currently collecting school supplies through September 5th. More information on the Sleep Train Foster Kids Program, resources for hosting your own drive, and upcoming drive dates can be found on the Sleep Train website.

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Wednesday, June 22nd, 2011

Sleep Train Names New COO; Gears up for Growth with Promotions

Former Senior Executive Vice President Rob Killgore Named New Chief Operating Officer

Sacramento, CA – May 30, 2011 – Today, Sleep Train, the number one mattress store on the West Coast and number four in the nation, announced a series of key promotions companywide in anticipation of future growth. The company appointed Rob Killgore, formerly the Senior Executive Vice President, to the role of Chief Operations Officer, where he will oversee strategic planning and daily operations of the Sacramento-based company and it’s nearly 1,200 employees. Killgore started with Sleep Train 25 years ago working as a delivery driver part time while attending California State University Sacramento.

The company also named Diane Hanratty as the Director of Human Resources; Brett Thornton as the new Director of Training and Development; Mark Tseu as VP of Information Technology; Gina Davis as the Director of Branding; Hernani Alves as the Enterprise VP of Retail Sales; Matt Jessell as the VP of Alternative Channel Sales; Darin Edwards as Director of Operations Training; and Mike Lavelle as Sleep Train’s Enterprise VP of Strategic Plan Execution.

Additionally, Sleep Train announced a number of regional leadership promotions, including Scott Higgins as the Regional VP of Southern California Sales; Brian Fifield as the Regional VP of Northern California Sales; Scott Murphy as the Regional VP of California Operations; Mike Estes as the Regional VP of Pacific Northwest Sales; and Bob Young as the Regional VP of Pacific Northwest Operations. “We are proud to announce that these new positions are being filled from our own pool of talented individuals,” said Dale Carlsen, CEO, Sleep Train. “As an employee-owned company, we strive to cultivate and expand our team’s professional skills through training, promotions and growth, and are proud to reward those who have been instrumental in Sleep Train’s growth and success. Our team is stronger than ever, and I’m excited about our company’s future as leaders in the mattress retail industry!”

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