Tontine Group

Tontine Group
Manufacturer
Founded 1870
Headquarters Brunswick East, Victoria, Australia
Products Pillows
Parent Pacific Brands
Website http://www.tontine.com.au/

Tontine is an Australian manufacturer of pillows. The company began in 1870. From 1984–2001 it was owned by Pacific Dunlop. In 2001 it was sold to create a separate entity. The Tontine group is part of Pacific Brands. Until 2007 the company's manufacturing base was at East Brunswick, Victoria[1] (it is now at Campbellfield in Victoria). Tontine Fibres is a division of United Bonded Fabrics a separate company manufacturing polyester insulation, air filtration, carpet underlays, geotextiles and a range of mattress and furniture comfort products and using the Tontine trademark under license.[2]

The company began making flock and soft bedding.[1] Tontine has been making pillows since 1956. In 1963 the company "launched" the first polyester filled pillow in Australia.[3]

The company is the leading pillow producer in Australia manufacturing half of all pillows sold in Australia.[1] Tontine manufactures pillows under its own brands and also under house brands for retailers. In 2002 it produced 3.6 million pillows per year. A former general manager of Tontine claimed that "Tontine is unique in the world because it is a strong pillow brand in what is a commodity market," she said. "In other countries there is no market leader because manufacturers tended to stay in their local areas."[4]

As the company is well known, it is referenced in jokes. For example, an Australian legal newsletter said of an alleged swindler who padded his timesheets "that at one stage pillow makers Tontine were said to be interested in sponsoring him."[5]

Duvets in Australia are known by the genericized trademark "Doona"; the brand name is owned by the Tontine Group.[6] The brand name was acquired by Tontine in 1991 when Pacific Dunlop took over the Northern Feather company which until that time had been one of Australia's largest manufacturers of feather and down-filled pillows and quilts.[7]

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Australia's most popular bedtime story". About the company. Tontine Group. Archived from the original on 2006-10-10. Retrieved 2006-12-06.
  2. ↑ "Tontine Fibres - About us". Tontine Fibres. Archived from the original on 2006-10-10. Retrieved 2006-12-08.
  3. ↑ "Tontine Group". Tontine Group. 2006. Archived from the original on 2006-10-10. Retrieved 2006-12-08.
  4. ↑ Porter, Ian (2004-01-28). "The chief claims victory in pillow fight". Business News. The Age. Retrieved 2006-12-07.
  5. ↑ "Redlich v Redlic (Corrs for tears)". Folklaw. Lawyers Weekly. 2003-09-11. Archived from the original on December 30, 2004. Retrieved 2006-12-07.
  6. ↑ "Buying guide: Duvets (archived): The jargon explained". Choice magazine. Retrieved 2006-12-07.
  7. ↑ "History of Pacific Dunlop Ltd" (PDF). Ansell. Archived from the original (pdf) on 2006-08-10. Retrieved 2006-12-08.


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