Former Metro Mattress workers try to revive Syracuse-area brand after bankruptcy

A familiar mattress name is back in Central New York, and the comeback carries real stakes for Syracuse-area shoppers, laid-off workers and customers who were left without a local store when Metro Mattress collapsed.

John Brown, a former Metro Mattress worker, is helping lead the revival alongside James Trent, another former employee who now owns a furniture and mattress store in Cleveland, Ohio. The effort is unusual in retail: former insiders have tried to rebuild a bankrupt chain by buying back its name and reopening stores under the Metro Mattress banner.

Metro Mattress filed for Chapter 11 protection on Sept. 4, 2024, in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of New York. At the time, the Syracuse-based company operated 69 stores in five states and said it would refocus on New York while leaving New England markets. The filing listed estimated assets of $1,000,001 to $10 million and liabilities of $10,000,001 to $50 million, with an estimated 100 to 199 creditors. The company also said it would keep operating normally in New York and honor existing warranties and commitments.

The rescue effort came after the business, founded in 1976, could no longer sustain itself. Metro Mattress later said it had failed to secure a buyer and was running out of money to cover expenses. Its liquidation plan said roughly 30 New England and New York locations had already been closed earlier in the restructuring. At its peak, the chain operated about 70 stores across New York and four New England states before the shutdown swept away the remaining stores in 2025.

The revived company says a group of industry veterans formed a new entity, purchased the Metro Mattress name and reopened six local locations. Other reporting said Brown and Trent had reopened eight stores under the Metro Mattress name. The website says the brand is serving Central and Upstate New York again with local delivery and showroom locations in Syracuse, Rochester, New Hartford, Batavia, Cortland, Oneonta, Horseheads, East Syracuse, West Syracuse and North Syracuse.

For Onondaga County, the comeback is more than a branding exercise. It is a test of whether a regional retailer can return from bankruptcy with a different playbook, one that has to work on financing, inventory, staffing and customer trust. If the revival holds, it could preserve a Syracuse-born retail name that once helped define a local shopping pattern across Central New York.