Jim McIngvale (also known as Mattress Mack) was born on February 11, 1951 in Starkville, Mississippi. He is a Houston businessman, who through selling mattresses and furniture, built Gallery Furniture . Gallery Furniture is one of the largest home furnishing retail stores in the United States. Mack's store is well known for its promise of same day delivery. At Gallery, if customers buy their furniture before 10 p.m., they will have it in their home the very same day, assuming they live within 100 miles of the store. Mack opened Gallery Furniture in 1981 in Houston, TX after being in the industry as a successful furniture salesman for many years. Gallery was started with only $5,000 and "a dream". The large furniture store now does around $200 million in sales per year.
Mattress Mack is well known in the Houston, Texas area as a leader in community involvement and philanthropy. In early 1984, he began a Christmas tradition of giving away furniture to 15 needy families per year. In 1992, Mack paid to feed 20,000 homeless people living in Houston. Mack has also sponsored a trip to Rome for Catholic students and teachers from 60 different schools in the Houston area. He has worked with former presidents George H. W. Bush and Bill Clinton to raise funds for the Houston Tsunami Relief Fund and the Bush-Clinton Katrina Fund. He has made sizable donations to local schools, colleges, and charitable efforts. He also has strong ties to the Houston sports teams -- the Houston Astros, Houston Rockets, Houston Texans and to professional tennis.
Mack is well known for his animated television advertising spots, which end with his yelling, in resounding cheer, "SAVE YOU MONEY!". McIngvale and his wife Linda have three children. His youngest daughter Elizabeth is the founder of Peace of Mind, a non-profit organization devoted to the research and cure of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, having struggled with OCD herself for several years. In 2002, McIngvale co-authored the book Always Think Big with Thomas Duening and John Ivancevich. The book chronicles the ups and downs of McIngvale's entrepreneurial career and offers readers advice on how to effectively market and manage a business.
Mattress Mack also keeps a blog online of his goings-on at his own MattressMack.com
