Daily News
From Home Furnishing Business
Roger Magowitz Joins Customatic Adjustable Bedz
January 12,
2017 by Larry Thomas in Executive Changes, Industry 
Mattress industry veteran Roger Magowitz, who helped build two of the industry’s major retail brands and founded the top philanthropic cause for the mattress industry, has joined Customatic Adjustable Bedz as executive vice president and member of the company’s senior leadership team.
In this new role, he will focus on further developing key account relationships and working with retailers.
During a mattress industry career spanning more than three decades, Magowitz ran a successful chain of mattress stores in Virginia, Georgia, and Arizona under the brands Mattress Discounters and Metropolitan Mattress. When Mattress Discounters was sold to Mattress Firm in 2010, he joined the senior leadership of Mattress Firm, the nation’s largest mattress retailer, to head its efforts in community relations and philanthropy.
His charitable work has been concentrated on finding a cure for pancreatic cancer, a disease that claimed the life of his mother. He established the Seena Magowitz Foundation in 2001, and has rallied the home furnishings industry to sponsor the cause, which has raised millions of dollars and brought greater awareness and resources to finding a cure for the deadly disease.
Customatic has been a committed supporter of the Seena Magowitz Foundation since its founding.
“We have worked with Roger for more than 25 years. He is one of the most knowledgeable retailers in the country, cultivating close relationships with suppliers and manufacturers as well. We believe he will be a great resource to our OEM and retailer customers, helping them become more profitable by tapping into the resources of the Customatic portfolio,” said Phil Sherman, Customatic managing partner, who founded the company in 2010 with industry veteran Phil McCarty.
Magowitz began his mattress industry career in 1983 as a part-time sales associate at Mattress Discounters. In 1987, he was named vice president of the company and offered the opportunity to buy six licenses for the retailer in the Hampton Roads, Va., area. That business grew to a high of 34 stores under the Mattress Discounters and Metropolitan Mattress names.
“I had been watching the Phils, of whom I have the utmost respect, build an outstanding brand in Customatic. The quality, innovation and customer service they bring to the adjustable category is refreshing. Their plans for future growth are very exciting and I wanted to be a part of it,” said Magowitz.
“Roger will help us further shape the company as a leader with primary focus on developing products in collaboration with retailers and vendor partners that fit their core marketing objectives. We couldn’t be more pleased that he has joined our team,” added Phil McCarty, Customatic managing partner. “His industry wisdom, wit and savvy will be a huge asset to our management team, and will allow Phil and me to reach out to other industry segments with unique innovations.”
Customatic Adjustable Bedz is headquartered in Natick, Mass., and operates more than 500,000 square feet of manufacturing space at four facilities in Taiwan.