How can there be $300 mattresses and $3000 mattresses! What are the differences?
Today one of the items for the home that everyone needs is mattresses. There seems to be so many different kinds. Brands that you have never heard of too! Prices are everywhere from $399 to $3000. How can this be?
It all has to do with the quality of the components. First let’s consider the spring units. There might be 300 coils which have a larger size and are larger in the middle of the spring. This type of coil compresses easily, so can offer a comfortable feel to begin with! Compared to an hour glass shaped coil, which is smaller in the middle and the turns are tighter together. Typically the hourglass shape has more steel, harder to compress and heavier weight steel so costs are different. Also, many have 500, 800 or 1000 coils…..that is a lot of variable cost!
Then there is a big cost variable due to the padding, quality and how much of it is used!
Changing the components can easily change the cost! Why is there $25,000 cars and $100,000 cars? It has to due with the components. I don’t understand why people think that a $299.00 mattress will hold up! Many people spend that much on an evening out for dinner and a concert, yet they want to spend that on a mattress and expect it to hold 500 pounds of body weight for ten years or more!
That word comparable is used a lot in the furniture industry. Keep in mind that it usually talked about the looks….and in mattresses that could be just referring to the thickness or the cover….it NEVER talks about the quality, the padding or the number of coils! Everyone thinks that there is a ton of markup on furniture and mattresses, and I wish that was true, but it just isn’t! A store will not stay in business very long if they are taking a $1000 mattress and selling it for $299.00. Realize, that a $299.00 mattress is made to sell for $299. Don’t be fooled. The store will typically try to talk you into a another mattress, hopefully to get you something that would hold up better! The $299 is to get you in the door! BEWARE! Advertising can be misleading, and usually does not give you all of the facts!
The best thing I can say is talk to someone that you trust. That is the same advice I would give you when building a home or needing a repair man or purchasing a car. Buy from a reputable store that you know and trust and have been in the area for a long time. There has been a lot of disappointed people who purchased from a large store, and then it went out of business, and they were left with none of the warranties that they were promised. Many larger stores buy product without the manufacturer’s warranty, so that they get it for a lower cost. But, if you have a problem, they are the only one that can repair it, if they will, and if they are gone, so is the warranty.
Smaller stores are there to help you, and if they are like me, I only work with manufacturers that will help me if you have a problem. I didn’t make the product so it is hard to fix if I cannot get parts! That is the main difference as to why I do American manufacturers…they are here and have parts in case we need them!
Well, recognize, if they are going to stay in business, they cannot sell below they cost, and give a bunch of free stuff. Read the details! Free delivery might be to the front door, but you have to pay extra to have it brought inside.
Other stores may include delivery at no extra cost too but will also do things such as bring your new bed inside the house, taking out the old one, and setting up the new bed! Most people want all of that because they are unable to do it themselves…. I always say make sure you read the fine print….it is all about the details…and free isn’t usually free! The cost is in there somewhere!
Those are great points Kathy…. always know what you are getting before you sign on the dotted line! They say free, free, free…. but is it?
People need to realize that stores cannot keep giving free! The cost has to be hidden in there somewhere. Large stores have a ton of overhead, wages, taxes, and insurances…. they have to make money somewhere to pay the bills! They may be trying to get you ask a client but realize that the lowest cost item is really low-cost quality…. don’t expect it to last!