I like to share incidents immediately because they present a wonderful learning opportunity. I just observed a woman enter a mattress store. She was needing two twin mattresses for her sons (3 & 12). After some initial qualifying questions the salesperson determined that this was largely a price driven decision. He took the woman to the less expensive options and began to discuss the merits of each. In the case

A gentleman walks into the mattress store and is promptly greeted by the salesperson. After exchanging names and pleasantries, they begin to discuss his mattress needs. It turns out he is looking for a California King set, good quality of course, for himself. His budget…. $500. Let me be really frank for a moment. NOTHING exists of any quality in a California King for $500. There may actually be a product ava

You go to a small chain of mattress stores and the salesperson gives you the hard sell on the brand new Purple Hippo 9000. This mattress boasts Platinum, 5 in 1 coils wrapped in 100% silk. It has both memory and amnesia foam, latex and a hundred other foam layers that have really sexy names. You try it out and it does feel awesome. The salesman has the hook in you, now its reeling time. It comes with a lifetime war

What a wonderful 2011 in the mattress biz. We recently saw the introduction of “flavored” memory foam, double and now triple coils and even an air conditioned mattress. What will 2012 offer? Only the mattress gurus know for sure. Here are a few tips as we wind down the last week of 2011: 1. Remember, even if your mattress includes fabric made from virgin llamas raised by blind, Tibetan monks, a solid go

If you find yourself needing a mattress, this may be a very good time to shop. The week leading up to and through Thanksgiving, retailers are spending gobs on advertising and promoting all sorts of mattress specials. Per earlier blogs, the savings may not change that much from the rest of the year, but there is something else in play. CHRISTMAS For those commissioned salespeople who get paid monthly, what they sell

I have been waiting for the day that foam beds take up the majority of floor space for mattress retailers. That day is at hand. Visit any major mattress retailer and you will see a variety of non-innerspring options from latex to air to memory foam to hybrids. I would suspect in the coming decade, you will see innerspring mattresses playing only a supporting role in the mattress sales/selection process. While Tempu

To all my readers who have served in the Armed Forces I say thank you for your service to our country. And a special thank you to the families of wounded veterans and those that paid the ultimate sacrifice. America is eternally grateful for your sacrifice. Friday is of course Veteran’s Day and probably the biggest mattress sales weekend of the fall. If time permits, do some shopping around before committing t

Dirty tricks used to be a staple of some of the sleazier folks in the mattress industry. Fortunately, most of the purveyors of this activity have either left the business or closed down. Caveat emptor – Let the buyer beware. New or Used Mattress – If you are buying “clearance, discontinued or floor models” there is a really good chance that you are buying used mattresses. Some states require

It has become a common practice to allow consumers to spend some time on the mattress and return it if they do not like it. I applaud the industry for this practice. You absolutely need a minimum of 30 days on a mattress to truly decide if it is the correct sleeping solution for your body. All mattresses, just like shoes, need to be conditioned for your body shape and size. This process may only take a day or two o

Columbus Day is the holiday we celebrate Europeans first landing in the Americas. What this has to do with mattresses and sleep is anyone’s guess. But it is for some a three day weekend, so why not have a mattress sale? A quick review of the sales events at various mattress retailers reveals a smorgasbord of options. “Free” Box Springs Sale - Make sure you ask what the price is for just the mattr

Blitzkrieg PT 1200 individually wrapped coils 13 Gauge Steel 3″ Visco 2″ Latex 4″ Really Soft Super Foam   If you saw these specs on a mattress, would you know if it was the right mattress for you? Probably not. You must lie down on the mattress for ten or fifteen minutes to begin to evaluate the support and comfort of any mattress. Always try a mattress on your back, then on your side a

I was always amused by the folks that visited the large membership clubs and then would come to my store. Do you really think a full service mattress retailer is going to compete with a membership warehouse that operates, in some cases, on single digit margins? Look, if all you care about is price, buy from a membership club. They will always be the cheapest. What you will compromise is the opportunity to test the

A brand new European luxury sedan pulls up and a very well dressed lady emerges with her son. She is dressed in designer fashions head-to-toe and is using a $200 phone. Her teenager is sporting an outfit along with name brand shoes that is easily $250+ at retail, even on sale. The mobile service for her phone and her son’s matching phone (and I would assume husband and other siblings) could easily be a c

Let’s assume that you are constantly hot, or even constantly cold in bed. Are there any solutions for you? Actually, there is. Sleep Inc.™ and Amerigon® have teamed up to produce the YuMe™ Bed – A Climate Controlled Bed. Currently available exclusively through Mattress Firm®, this bed allows you to control the temperature of each side of the mattress from 60°F – 109°F. It is an 11″ p

No topic gets me more fired up than the rumor that Tempur-Pedic® mattresses make you sleep hot. There are seemingly hundreds of sites dedicated to this topic and when it gets time to offer a solution, you guessed it, its a visco elastic knock off. First off, I sleep on a Tempur-Pedic and have for almost 6 months now. I live in a very warm climate where triple digits are the norm throughout the Summer. I am also ex

If you head out this weekend to buy the mattress of your dreams, DO NOT FORGET THE MATTRESS PROTECTOR! Sorry for shouting, but I just had a friend that recently bought a new mattress. They forgot the protector and of course the grandchild had an accident on their new mattress. They hired a professional steamer, but it did little to correct the problem. Please, please, please heed this one piece of advice. If you bu

Its that time again, the mother of all mattress sales – Labor Day. There are some stores that will do as much business the week of Labor Day as they do in a single month. Why? Its a combination of things. End of Summer, back to school, 3-day weekend and everybody and their dog will be advertising a mattress sale. This is a perfect storm for posting big numbers. Here is some advice for the coming weekend. Shop

A few folks have written wondering how to know when its time to change your mattress. So here are a few things to consider. 1. Crater Lake – If there is a giant hole in your mattress or two valleys on either side of a ridge in the middle, it may be time to change. Innerspring mattresses are notorious for developing body impressions where you sleep. If it is still under warranty (1.5″ for most manufactur

I was forwarded several links that purportedly were from unbiased sites that discuss complaints about Tempur-Pedic® mattresses. They wanted me to take a look and provide some feedback. Before I start the process of debunking the so-called complaints, the first thing you should look for on any site that purports to reveal “the facts” is to figure out their point of view. If the answer to every “pr

Let’s Make A Deal I have heard many versions of the following story. A customer heads out to the nearest furniture discounter or liquidator. They see a $4,000 handmade mattress on sale for $800. It is a massively thick super pillowtop that feels great. “What a deal!” – they think to themselves and pull out their credit card to purchase the mattress. A year or two later, the mattress of thei

Independence Day Mattress Sale! The birth of our country (4th of July) is another good reason to have a massive mattress sale. I did a quick review of various chains to see what was being offered. Two chains are featuring $1000 off a name-brand mattress. No telling what type of quality it may be. Another is offering free delivery over $599 and free memory foam pillows with a purchase. Some offer 50% or 70% off, the

I am coming up on my 60th day on my Tempurpedic Cloud Supreme mattress and I can still say that this is the best mattress I have EVER slept on to date. The benefits are numerous – no noise, no motion transfer, no back  or shoulder pain and absolutely no body impressions. There is nobody on the planet that is more hot natured than me. But only a couple of times have I noticed that I was sleeping warmer than

What I love the most about the big Summer holiday sales season is the people that swear that the grass is greaner at the last mattress shop. I was at a store during Memorial Day weekend and heard variations of this theme numerous times. Sometimes it was simply confusion. There are thousands of mattresses on the market and product confusion is rampant among consumers who only shop once every decade. Bad information

This is the big one – Memorial Day! If you are heading out to find the bed of your dreams, here are a few things to keep in mind: HYPE: EVERYONE is having a “BIG” sale. Don’t fall for the hype. Buying  the correct mattress is more important than “getting this last one for 75% off.” Or, that gift card or TV – remember if you are getting freebies, you are paying for it somew

If you are tired of waking up with a sore back, or tossing and turning all night, now is your chance to change all that. Tempur-Pedic® is currently offering up to $200 off all flat sets. Their entire line is available at these lower prices at any authorized Tempur-Pedic dealer. They are also discontinuing the Classic and Deluxe models which will save you a few more dollars while they last. Tempur-Pedic minimum pr