Nine mattress outlets were raided in Germany on Thursday as part of a nationwide investigation by the Federal Cartel Office into price-fixing.

The manufacturers are suspected of offering retailers advantages, or threatening them with disadvantages, to make them stick to a minimum price on certain mattresses, the Cartel Office said in Bonn on Friday.

According to the financial daily Handelsblatt, the entire German mattress industry was in turmoil over the raids. Many firms were reportedly taken completely off guard. Many suspect the Cartel Office was tipped off. The manufacturers Malie, Tempur, Fey&Co and Schlaraffia have all confirmed that their premises had been searched.

Companies in Bavaria, North Rhine-Westphalia, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Berlin and Brandenburg were all searched.

Purchasing associations

German retailers generally order mattresses through central purchasing associations, and many analysts believe they can have a huge impact on the market, since the largest of these deliver goods to up to 30 furniture stores.

There are also many factory outlets, who offer discount mattresses. But according to Jürgen Dax, spokesman for the bedmaker's trade association, these had lost importance in recent years.

If found guilty of price-fixing, the companies under investigation stand to face heavy fines.

Author: Ben Knight (dpa, Reuters)
Editor: Nicole Goebel