Mattress Discounters Corp files for bankruptcy again

NEW YORK, Sept 11 (Reuters) - U.S. bedding retailer Mattress Discounters Corp has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection from creditors for the second time since 2002.

In a filing on Thursday, in U.S. bankruptcy court in Maryland, the company's chief executive said it had been hurt by an industry downturn and the weakened economy, with year-over-year sales falling in every month in 2008.

The company, which runs 140 stores in six states in the U.S. Northeast, filed its bankruptcy petition on Wednesday, listing assets in the range of $10 million to $50 million and liabilities of the same.

The 30-year-old company said it has about 475 full and part-time employees.

The company, which had 240 stores when it first filed for bankruptcy in 2002, had closed and sold several stores and exited from markets in California and Michigan, allowing it to emerge from bankruptcy protection in 2003.

Last year, Houston, Texas-based Mattress Firm, had intended to acquire the company, but the deal fell apart.

(Reporting by Emily Chasan; Editing by Bernard Orr)