Everything’s bigger in Texas, including the outrageousness and insanity of a 9/11 mattress sale. The store owners of Miracle Mattress in San Antonio employed the tasteless tactic of using a national tragedy to sell merchandise, and then upped the disgusting factor with a promotional video showing two towers of twin mattresses – twin towers, get it! – getting knocked over by falling employees.
Store manager Cherise Bonanno closes the ad by shouting:
“Oh my god! We’ll never forget.”
The commercial immediately incited anger when it posted on social media, and on Friday, Miracle Mattress’ owner announced the store would close indefinitely, at least through the 9/11 anniversary.
They deleted the video from the company Facebook page, but is still available on YouTube through other sources. Store owner Mike Bonanno posted a letter apologizing for the video’s production.
He called it:
“Tasteless and an affront to the men and women who lost their lives on 9/11.”
From Mike Bonanno’s letter:
“I accept responsibility for this thoughtless and crude advertisement, and will immediately hold my employees accountable for this seriously lapse in decency.”
Those employees include Cherise Bonanno, who is reportedly Mike Bonanno’s daughter. Mike Bonanno says in his letter that he works in the company’s corporate office in Houston and had no knowledge of the San Antonio store’s promotion or the production of the offensive video.
Unsurprisingly, the apology did little to stop the flow of criticism heaped on the company through social media. Facebook user Sissy Tuck, for example, wrote on the company page:
“I do not accept your apology. Your daughter is in charge of advertising and social media and she’s the one in the commercial. You knew damn good and well what was going on and now you’re on damage control. How dare you make a joke of 9/11?”
On Friday, Mike Bonanno posted a second letter, this one announcing the store would be closed indefinitely:
“We will be silent through the 9/11 Anniversary to avoid any further distractions from a day of recognition and remembrance for victims and their families… Miracle Mattress will deliver a public statement next week highlighting accountability actions taken within the company. We will also describe our plans to offer support for the 9/11 Memorial and victims fund.”
The commercial appeared on Facebook days before the fifteenth anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the worst on American soil in history.
Of course, while the video certainly merits the description of crude, there clearly was thought put into the promotion.
Cherish Bonanno opens the video by noting:
“What better way to remember 9/11 than with a twin tower sale.”
The pretext of the video is a sale during which all sized mattresses will be sold for the price of a twin. An American flag can be seen sticking out of one of the mattress towers in the background before it gets toppled.
And the commercial certainly drew attention, just nothing positive. It even caught the attention of those living in New York City, like commenter Diane Stevens Liotta:
“I am a New Yorker and live in Manhattan. That horrible day will stay with me forever. I cannot believe that ANYONE in their right mind could EVER think it’s ok to mock that tragedy! Not only is the video an affront to the people who lost their lives, but also to the people who grieved with the families of loved ones lost.”
Although you can watch the commercial from a secondary source below, be warned that although intended to be comedic, it’s far from funny to those who remember the 9/11 attacks, especially those who lived through it and who lost family and friends.
View the video here:
https://youtu.be/2ZmM-2gj5Gc
Featured Image: Screemshot Via YouTube Video.
