KARMA IS A BITCH

MyPillow is auctioning off equipment after retailers pull its products

CEO Mike Lindell says annual sales fell $100 million after several big-box retailers cut ties following his election claims.

By Briana Bierschbach and Brooks Johnson Star Tribune
JULY 10, 2023 

GLEN STUBBE, STAR TRIBUNE FILE
Finished MyPillow pallets are wrapped and stored at the manufacturing facility in Shakopee.

MyPillow is auctioning off hundreds of pieces of equipment and subleasing manufacturing space after several shopping networks and major retailers took the company's products off shelves.

The Chaska-based manufacturer recently listed more than 850 "surplus equipment" items on the online auction site K-Bid. Sewing machines, industrial fabric spreaders, forklifts and even desks and chairs are up for auction.

Founder and CEO Mike Lindell said MyPillow has experienced a loss in revenue and the items are no longer needed as the company consolidates its operations.

Major retailers such as Walmart, Bed Bath & Beyond and Slumberland Furniture all said they will no longer sell MyPillow products as Lindell continues to falsely claim that the 2020 election was stolen from former President Donald Trump.

"It was a massive, massive cancellation," Lindell said in a phone interview Monday. "We lost $100 million from attacks by the box stores, the shopping networks, the shopping channels, all of them did cancel culture on us."

The auction does not appear related to the $1.3 billion defamation lawsuit targeting both Lindell and MyPillow, which is ongoing in federal court.

Dominion Voting Systems alleges Lindell defamed the company as part of his campaign to paint the 2020 presidential election as "rigged." Dominion makes voting machines and election software.

Lindell has not backed down from his assertions that there was something wrong with the 2020 election and its results. He said he plans to host an event next month detailing a new way to hold elections.

But the ongoing controversy over his claims has forced major shifts in his business. After some shopping networks dropped his products, the company has moved to direct sales, shooting new television commercials and trying to boost its presence through email marketing, radio spots and direct mailing.

Lindell said the company is subleasing some of its manufacturing space in Shakopee because the packaging for direct sales is different than what it needed when working with big retailers.

"We kind of needed a building and a half, but now with these moves we're making, we can get it down to our one building," he said.

"If the box stores ever came back we could have it if we needed it, but we don't need that," he added. "It affected a lot of things when you lose that big of a chunk [of revenue]."

The same is true for the equipment he's auctioning off. He said he will need to replace whatever he auctions off if the retailers "ever came back."

There were several months after MyPillow was dropped by retailers when there was "hardly anything" for some workers to do, Lindell said. He shifted employees to work for MyStore, an online marketplace he created. Others moved over to his addiction resource organization, the Lindell Recovery Network.

Most hardware stores, such as Menards, Fleet Farm and Ace, continue to carry MyPillow products, he said. He hasn't had to lay off any employees yet, but some may have left the company after being reassigned new roles, Lindell said.

When asked if the matter of the pending lawsuits has added to the challenges in his business, Lindell said "of course it has."

In April, an arbitration panel ruled that Lindell needed to pay $5 million to a software forensics expert who disproved several of his election claims in a "Prove Mike Wrong" contest. Lindell has challenged that ruling, calling it "frivolous."

"The $5 million is the lowest one," he said. "I will be vindicated in every single one."