Hi Steveo,
This will be a longer post and I thought I might help you narrow down the list a bit 
Re: Chiromatic, North Brunswick, NJ
I have talked with Chiromatic on a few occasions over time and the conversations I have had were also on the confusing side and less than fully transparent. They take the more âmedicalâ approach to mattress shopping and tend not to go into any specifics on the phone and in my experience when an appointment is required to visit a showroom that itâs usually a sign for âexpensiveâ. It certainly sets up an environment that feels more like a doctors visit than mattress shopping. While I listed them because they can make custom adjustments to their mattresses, they are more a âretail directâ outlet. They would not be my first choice and I am not particularly comfortable with their approach.
Re: Habitat, Online
A quick comment would be âgood quality but I would make some careful value comparisonsâ. While they may compare well to national brands or mass market retailers ⌠they are more than many local manufacturers or other online manufacturers or retailers (including several of the members of this site) that use either similar or higher cost materials, have more options available both before and after a purchase, and sell them at a lower price.
Re: Croydon Mattress, Bensalum, PA
They seem to me to be producing good quality mattresses but I would have some questions that I would want to answer before before I could form a better opinion about their value. In a brief conversation with them I got the sense that they are not as materials focused as I would personally like to see and I would want to know the density of any polyfoam they are using, the type of latex they are using, and the density of any memory foam they are using. While they would IMO represent better value that similar mattresses that were available at mass market outlets ⌠they donât seem to be in the same value range as many other factory direct manufacturers that I have talked with and I would want to talk with him more and ask some further questions (that I had some difficulty getting answers to) before I felt completely comfortable with them. I personally donât understand why a mattress that is selling for well over $2000 (queen) would use 2" of 1.5 or 1.8 lb less expensive polyfoam in a quilting layer over either memory foam or latex. I am also curious why they are in some cases adding thick layers of polyfoam under a mattress that doesnât seem to need it (as in the Heavenly Sweet Dream). Overall I would want more information than I currently have to understand their design ideas and justify their prices in comparison to other factory directs.
In terms of a specific recommendation on a mattress ⌠testing a mattress for pressure relief and support is a far more accurate method of knowing what is most suitable than more generic suggestions based on what I call âtheory at a distanceâ. Some general guidelines that may help you are in the overview here, in the sleeping positions page here and in the personal statistics page here.
If you have any specific feedback or questions from testing a certain mattress and need any help in translating what it may be âpointingâ to ⌠Iâd certainly be happy to help but most local manufacturers are very good at this and can do it in âreal timeâ while you are in the showroom. The most important part is to make sure the person you are working with has your interests and long term satisfaction in mind more than their desire to earn a profit and commission. Because personal needs and preferences are so unique ⌠actual testing with the guidance of someone who knows how their mattresses are made and how to âfitâ a mattress to a person is always the best way to decide âwhich modelâ may be best once you have some basic guidelines of where to start.
This first group includes the members here that would include many of the better quality/value choices within about 50 miles of Monroe Township and would be a good place to start your research.
http://www.shovlinmattress.com/ Fanwood, NJ. Factory direct local manufacturer that makes a wide range of latex and innerspring mattresses that use high quality materials. They are knowledgeable and transparent and are a member of this site.
http://scottjordan.com/ New York, NY. Retail outlet for Berkeley Ergonomics mattresses which are high quality mattresses that include latex, pocket coil, and microcoil options. They are knowledgeable and transparent and they are also a member of this site.
www.urbannatural.com Paramus, NJ. They are also a retail outlet for Berkeley Ergonomics mattresses and are knowledgeable and transparent as well and are also a member of this site.
Nest Beding New York, NY. They are a member of this site and are knowledgeable, experienced, and transparent and carry a range of mattresses including latex, memory foam, and latex and memory foam/pocket coil hybrids that have good quality/value.
From the list I posted earlier âŚ
http://www.chbeckley.com/ Bronx, NY
http://www.mycustombedding.com/ Clark, NJ
These are more premium manufacturers who specialize in old style construction techniques that use a lot of natural fibers, hand tufting, and other more labor intensive hand building techniques in their mattresses. They are very high quality but are not for everyone and their prices will reflect this. These are the types of construction methods and materials (like horsehair) that you donât see a lot these days and while they are certainly in the higher price range ⌠for those who are looking for this type of mattress itâs really nice that they are being made locally and they represent good value compared to some other larger manufacturers of similar mattresses who charge much more for this type of construction.
Some other options with a wide variety of choices and materials (and price ranges) include âŚ
Other Manufacturers:
http://www.charlesprogers.com/ New York, NY and East Rutherford, NJ. Local manufacturer that makes a line of innerspring and memory foam mattresses (and make their own innersprings) including a latex/innerspring hybrid. They have told me that they are transparent about the materials they use but unfortunately when I asked for specifics I confirmed they donât disclose the density of the polyfoam they use in their mattresses so there really isnât any way to know the quality/durability of their materials or make meaningful comparisons with other mattresses. This lack of transparency is fairly unusual with smaller independent manufacturers. Some of their mattresses are made in China and some (the Power Core mattresses) are made at their factory in NJ.
www.helixsleep.com/nycshowroom New York. NY. They make a single mattress that can be customized in many different ways to suit the needs and preferences of different people. They are normally sold online and you can see some comments about their mattress in post #2 here in the simplified choice mattress topic but they also have a showroom in New York City where you can test the different combinations in person.
https://www.wrightbedding.com/ New York, NY. They make a single mattress that is normally sold online but they also have a showroom in Lafayette so that those that are in the local area can test them in person. They use 1.5" of 5 lb memory foam on top of 2" of 3 lb high performance polyfoam on top of 1.5" of 4 lb high performance polyfoam (the high performance polyfoam layers have similar properties to memory foam without the slow response) on top of a 6" 2.4 lb polyfoam base layer which are all very high quality and durable materials that would be suitable for any weight range.
https://caspersleep.com/ New York, NY. They make a single simplified choice mattress. They are usually sold online but they have an office in New York so those that are local can test their mattresses in person.
http://www.whitelotus.net/ Highland Park, NJ & other NY Retailer locations. They produce some very high quality mattresses and futons using mostly latex, cotton, and wool. These are a much more legitimate ânaturalâ choice but because of their extensive use of wool and cotton with their latex, their prices are more than some latex only styles of mattress which only have a wool quilting. They very nice and have good value and are well worth considering given the materials that they use but are not a âbudgetâ mattress.
Shop Affordable Home Furnishings & Home Goods - IKEA Elizabeth, NJ. Brooklyn, NY. Makes a few âbetterâ value mattresses including some mostly natural Dunlop and some innerspring latex hybrids. See post #3 here for more about which may be better quality/value.
http://www.comfortbeddinginc.com/ Brooklyn, NY. Mainly a wholesale manufacturer in Brooklyn but has a factory direct showroom in Brooklyn. They sell a range of innerspring mattresses in low/mid budget ranges. No latex and their memory foam is mostly low density.
http://keetsa.com/ New York, NY. A smaller national manufacturer which is part of the Zinus group which are manufactured in China. They have a somewhat exaggerated âgreenâ focus and are certainly using materials such as polyfoam and memory foam which IMO canât legitimately be called natural or green in any variation. They also use mid grade foams in their mattresses and their pricing, while better than some, is also not in the same ballpark as most local manufacturers and seems to include a premium based on their questionable âgreenâ story.
Retailers:
https://www.thecleanbedroom.com/ Summit, NJ. New York, NY. They are a retail outlet that carries several very high quality premium latex mattresses but also have some premium prices. The Savvy Rest and some of the others including Green Sleep are âchoose your own layerâ mattresses and are a great way to test out the feel of various different types of latex layering. (NOTE ADDED: They closed in June, 2016 but they are now under new ownership and have reopened their New York store and will gradually open some of their other stores as well)
http://www.thebedroomgalleries.com/ Howell, NJ. The WJ Southard here are somewhat comparable to white lotus in that they also tend to use more natural fibers in their mattresses. Their Classic Brands mattresses are more of a âbudgetâ smaller national brand although they can also have good value depending on their price.
http://www.hibernatebedding.com/ Bernardsville, NJ. Retailer that carries Savvy Rest component latex mattresses as well as OMI and Paramount mattresses.
http://www.longsbedding.com/ New York, NY. Retail outlet that carries a wide range of mattresses including premium (and some ultra premium) and their own house brand. There are some very high quality choices here but also some very high prices so make sure you are making good âvalue comparisonsâ if you go here.
http://theorganicnest.com/ Retailer in Bernardsville, NJ. Carry several high quality latex mattresses and an innerspring/natural fiber mattress made by Land & Sky.
http://www.roomandboard.com/ New York, NY They are also a retail outlet that sells Restwell mattresses which have a range of memory foam, latex, and innerspring mattresses. While they too offer better value than most national brands and chain stores IMO ⌠they are also not in the same value range as most local factory direct manufacturers. Make sure you check foam density with any mattresses that use polyfoam or memory foam in the comfort layers.
http://unitedbedding.com/ Wholesale manufacturer in Plainfield, NJ that makes Ditex and Rex brand mattresses and many house brands in the area as well. They make some better quality/value mattresses including memory foam (and gel memory foam), innerspring/polyfoam, and polyfoam mattresses. They will provide foam specs to their retailers so consumers can make meaningful comparisons with their mattresses and have a retail store finder on their site.
http://puretalalaybliss.com/ Is a national manufacturer of some high quality Talalay latex mattresses and their retail store finder can provide you with the retailers that carry them that are closest to you.
Other nearby lists (with some overlap) are post #2 here which includes the better options and possibilities Iâm aware of in and around the larger New York City area, post #4 here which includes the Philadelphia/Wilmington/Trenton area, and post #2 here also includes some other good options in the south CT area.
For most consumers and more âtypicalâ budgets ⌠the first group of 5 likely represents the best selection and value on the list and is where most people would probably do best focusing their efforts. They all use good quality materials, have good service, are knowledgeable about the materials they use, helpful with their customers, and offer good value. The others may have some good options as well depending on each personâs specific criteria, preferences, or budget range.
I hope this helps to ânarrow downâ the list.
Phoenix