Kohl's, Bed Bath & Beyond, and other companies' decision to end partnerships with MyPillow spell 'pain' for the controversial pillow brand
- Bed Bath & Beyond, Kohl's, and other companies are ending partnerships with MyPillow.
- MyPillow CEO says companies cut ties because he is spreading baseless voter fraud theories.
- Industry experts said this will hurt MyPillow and put pressure on its direct sales business.
Companies' decisions to cut ties with MyPillow are shaping up to be a significant blow to the controversial pillow company.
Bed Bath & Beyond and Kohl's confirmed this week that they are cutting ties with MyPillow. Fintech startup Affirm told Insider it had also cut ties.
According to MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell, numerous other stores including H-E-B, Kroger, and BJ's have told him they will no longer sell MyPillow products. (These brands did not respond to Insider's request for comment.)
In statements, Bed Bath & Beyond and Kohl's said that they would no longer sell MyPillow products because of poor sales. Affirm did not provide an explanation for ending the business relationship.
"As previously announced, we have been rationalizing our assortment to discontinue a number of underperforming items and brands. This includes the My Pillow product line," a Bed Bath & Beyond spokesperson said in an email. "Our decisions are data-driven, customer-inspired, and are delivering substantial growth in our key destination categories."
Lindell, however, said that he was skeptical of companies' decisions to cut ties soon after news broke he is facing a legal threat from voting-technology company Dominion, linked to his propagation of baseless voter fraud theories.
"It's 100% cancel culture," Lindell, a vocal supporter of former President Donald Trump, told Insider in an interview.
"They were afraid of being boycotted by customers because they live in fear of all these attack groups," Lindell added. "And they're not their customers. What's going to happen to them now is that all the real customers are going to be very upset."
Companies cutting ties 'will cause some pain'
Chris Alleri, the founder of brand consultancy Mulberry & Astor, told Insider that he also believes companies are cutting ties because of Lindell's insistence on spreading baseless theories that President Joe Biden "stole" the election. However, unlike Lindell, he believes these companies are making the right decision.
"Lindell is being dropped right and left by legitimate retailers, not because he's friends with Trump, not because he's some victim, because he has a big mouth that has been spewing lies," Alleri said in an email to Insider. "No brand wants to associate with a dumpster fire like that. Advancing a false narrative of a stolen election has consequences."
These consequences could have a sizable impact on My Pillows business. Neil Saunders, managing director of analytics firm GlobalData, said sales through retail partnerships have become a "much more significant element of MyPillow's business."
"The loss of these selling channels will cause some pain and will put more pressure on the direct-to-consumer business," Saunders said. "It's also the case that distributing through retailers widened the audience for MyPillow beyond the consumers who digest infomercials, so the company will now need to find other ways of reaching these potential customers."
MyPillow CEO says he is not worried about partnerships ending
Not all companies are cutting ties.
Costco said this week it plans to continue to sell MyPillow products. A representative told told SFGate on Thursday that the company has "contractual commitments to MyPillow that we intend to honor, as we seek to do with all of our suppliers.
Walmart continues to sell a range of MyPillow products, despite the fact that some pillows are being flooded with one-star reviews.
"If you sleep with this pillow, you might wake up at a fascist like the CEO," reads one such review.
Walmart did not respond to Insider's request for comment.
Lindell told Insider that he expects companies that continue to stock MyPillow to see a rise in sales. Further, he said, he anticipates MyPillow's direct sales to grow in the aftermath of backlash.
"We're going to get very busy," Lindell said. "And those stores are going to lose out because they don't have the products that people want. It's sad for them that they bowed down to these left-wing groups that - all they do is attack."
Alleri is skeptical of Lindell's confidence.
"Maybe some of Trump's deranged diehards might want to buy his products," Alleri said, referring to supporters of the former president who - like Lindell - do not believe Biden won the election.
However, Alleri added, "that's not enough to build a legitimate brand with staying power."