Glad to have found this site... and Quality Sleep Shop

Like most first time visitors to this site I arrived here while doing research for a new mattress. We have new bedroom furniture coming within the month and needed to replace our mattress which my wife bought over 20 years ago before we got married. In a guest room of our house I have a Serta Perfect Sleeper which I also bought 20 years ago as a bachelor and loved. It is not heavily used now but is still in great condition. Foolishly I thought “well, we’ll just buy another Serta set”. THANK GOD I DID NOT DO THAT.

Searching the web I came across the countless horror stories about the big mattress makers shamelessly fleecing consumers and quickly realized I had a LOT more leg work to do. I didn’t want to become another cheated, disgruntled consumer out thousands of dollars. That’s when I began to learn the truth: the company that made my old mattress is nothing like the company that exists today. The name may be the same, but the company is just riding the crest of a reputation earned generations ago and no longer warranted. The same is true for the other “Big S” makers. I found out my brother, who purchased a top of the line famous maker set for over $2000 not long ago and which failed (sank) quickly, was also a victim of the unscrupulous marketing, shoddy manufacturing and famous warranty scam. They refused him warranty coverage thanks to some loophole.

The “Big S” makers have taken consumer-unfriendly business principles of supersizing profits taught in MBA programs to new heights: use the cheapest materials and production methods, mislead people with patently false advertising (lies) and unscrupulous marketing tactics, cheat on warranty coverage and do everything possible to derail consumers’ efforts to educate themselves and to prepare well for the purchase process.

It’s an industry that’s desperately in need of regulation, in my humble opinion. It’s a racket.

Back to my story. We started off looking and the high end retailer from which we bought our bedroom set. We got sticker shock. They were showing us $3000-$5000 sets. We asked about something in the $2000 or less, and the salesperson said “let me check to see if we have anything discontinued that’s lying around”. Huh? For $2000 we have to look for last year’s leftovers? I knew there was better value out there. We tried other “better retailers” only to quickly learn that salespeople who may be quite knowledgeable about furniture know little to nothing about mattresses - be that by design or otherwise. None could actually tell us why one was better than the other. The common response we got was that Sealy, Simmons and Serta are the best makers and that price somehow determines quality. Simply put, there are thousands of angry consumers on the web who would refute that claim. I even found many people who’d been duped by the “Big S” makers two or more times in a row, having bought a mattress only to have it fail prematurely then replace it with another expensive disappointment.

But the marketing tactics are working, and working well. We were furniture shopping at a venerable, reputable major department store’s furniture showroom near our home. The parking lot was full but there was no one around so far as we could see. We asked the salesperson helping us with bedroom sets where all the cars were from, she told us the bedding dept in the basement was packed with people thanks to a huge sale. What brands do they sell? the “Big S” makers, exclusively.

I think the salespeople at the major retailers and many franchise bed shops are so poorly trained in this area they may actually believe they are telling people the truth. But, one can’t disclude the possibility that many know better but simply won’t let pesky ethics stand in the way of a sale. Even Costco, where we shop regularly and which was praised by Clark Howard as one of the best mattress retailers in the country, fell short. For questions they direct you to the manufacturer’s customer service, which I found frustrating and unenlightening. Additionally, for innerspring lines they only sell a few of the “Big S” makers. (In fairness to Costco, their memory foam and latex lines seem to be supplied by makers with better reputations). Of course I’m no expert, but one always has the Costco satisfaction guarantee to fall back on. Still, we weren’t about to start down that path. Returning a shirt or a blender is one thing. Returning a queen mattress set is quite another. Wanting innerspring, we quickly ruled Costco out.

So once I started digging deeper I found a glut of valuable information I could use to make an informed purchase decision. Soon I found your website and started taking what I could from the wealth of information therein. I have to admit, a lot of it is way over my head and quite technical for the layperson. But we found out what to look for and learned more about Quality Sleep Shop, a small manufacturer about 30 miles from our home. I’d seen their website after learning to stay away from the big guys but knew nothing about them. Your praises for their work convinced me I needed to look closer. My wife and I drove to their showroom and talked at length with a seasoned salesperson who was able to describe in detail the manufacturing process, materials used and warranty coverage to expect. You can even see their factory floor from a window in the showroom. We stayed for two hours checking out all their mattresses, but settled on the Emily pillowtop set. We bought it finished on two sides (something the Big S makers won’t do as it extends the life of the mattress) and upgraded to all wool padding from Dacron. It’s their most popular model, and I can see why. We got a semi-custom set at a price that is just awesome, and we feel really great about the purchase. I’m sure it will bring us years of comfort and value. Down the road I will update mattressunderground.com forum readers on how our new mattress performs.

Hi jayw,

Thanks for taking the time to share such detailed, thoughtful, and insightful comments and feedback … I appreciate it!

As you probably know from your reading here I certainly share your thoughts about the current state of the industry.

Like so many of the other forum members that have purchased from them as well … it’s great to hear that you had such a good experience at Quality Sleep Shop

Most important of all ,… you made a great quality/value choice … and congratulations on your new mattress :slight_smile:

I’m looking forward to any additional comments and feedback you have the chance to share over time.

Phoenix

Thank you for your story…and yes! for this site too. I will be checking out the Quality Sleep Shop to help find a mattress suitable for my needs. Even though I have gone through a lot of the materials on this site, I am still quite lost on how to purchase the right mattress for me. Hopefully the Quality Sleep Shop can help me find a mattress that covers the 3 P’s and is in my price range.

Hi juniojeff,

There are some testing guidelines in step 4 of the mattress shopping tutorial that will help you assess whether a mattress is a good match for you in terms of PPP but Quality Sleep Shop is also very knowledgeable, experienced, and helpful and will provide you with good guidance that can help you decide which of their mattresses are the best choice for you as well.

As you probably know from your reading here you are certainly heading in a good direction and I’m looking forward to your comments and feedback after your visit.

Phoenix

Hi - just to let everyone know, I’m going to be heading to Quality Sleep Shop to look at some mattresses, and will follow up with my thoughts on their current spate of mattresses.

If there are any more recent Chicagoland places, I’d also be happy to hear about them.

Cheers!

Hi RJ29,

The better options or possibilities I’m aware of in and around the Chicago area (subject to making sure that any mattress you consider meets the quality/value guidelines here) are listed in posts #2 and #4 here.

As you know Quality Sleep Shop is one of the members here which means that I think very highly of them and I believe that they compete well with the best in the industry in terms of their quality, value, service, knowledge, and transparency so you are certainly heading in a great direction and I’m looking forward to your comments and feedback after your visit.

Phoenix

Thank you, Phoenix, for this list, and the service you provide here!

I’ve gone through the posts you indicated, and QSS seems to be the place worth checking out nearby. I’m interested if any forum members might have reactions as to how the Quality Sleep Shop mi Comfort foam and latex mattresses compare to other combination beds? I know it’s a subjective measure, and that PPP are the most important aspects to consider (and I will when I go check out the bed) – but would these be considered soft/ med/ or firm – or can they be customized?

If anyone has tried these and also any of the online beds: specifically the Alexander Mattress at Nest (which I have tried and rather liked) or the Brooklyn Bedding soft/ medium, I’d be happy to hear what they think.

For reference, I currently have the Bedinabox Tranquility with Tencel, and it’s extremely firm for my taste.

I’ll report back on my decision shortly!

Hi RJ29,

That’s probably too broad a question for anyone to really answer (“other combination beds” would include hundreds to thousands of mattresses that would be very different from each other) but there is more information in post #9 here about the different ways that one mattress can “match” or “approximate” another one. Every layer and component in a mattress (including the cover) will affect the feel and performance of every other layer and component and the mattress “as a whole” and unless you are able to find another mattress that uses exactly the same materials, components, and design (which would be very unlikely) then there really isn’t a way to match one mattress to another one based on the specifications of the mattress.

Mattress manufacturers generally try to differentiate their mattress from the mattresses made by other manufacturers and don’t normally try to “match” another mattress that is made by a different manufacturer so it’s also unlikely that you will find another mattress that is specifically designed to “match” or “approximate” one of the mattresses you mentioned in terms so the only way to know how two mattresses compare for you in terms of how it “feels” or in terms of firmness or PPP would be based on your own careful testing or actual sleeping experience on both of them.

There are also no “standard” definitions or consensus of opinions for firmness ratings and different manufacturers can rate their mattresses very differently than others so a mattress that one manufacturer rates as being a specific firmness could be rated very differently by another manufacturer. Different people can also have very different perceptions of firmness and softness compared to others as well and a mattress that feels firm for one person can feel like “medium” for someone else or even “soft” for someone else (or vice versa) depending on their body type, sleeping style, physiology, their frame of reference based on what they are used to, and their individual sensitivity and perceptions. There are also different types of firmness and softness that different people may be sensitive to that can affect how they “rate” a mattress as well (see post #15 here) so different people can also have very different opinions on how two mattresses compare in terms of firmness as well and some people may rate one mattress as being firmer than another and someone else may rate them the other way around. This is all relative and very subjective and is as much an art as a science.

There is also some good information about the most important parts of the “value” of a mattress purchase in post #13 here which can help you make more meaningful quality/value comparisons between mattresses in terms of suitability (how well you will sleep), durability (how long you will sleep well), and the overall value of a mattress compared to your other finalists (based on all the parts of your personal value equation that are most important to you).

Forum searches on MiComfort and on Alexander and on BestMattressEver (you can just click the links) will also bring up more comments and feedback about each of them.

Phoenix

I’m writing to follow up on my visit to Quality Sleep Shop. They were great, and had excellent service, but the mattresses I liked were simply too expensive (circa 2,000-3,000) for my budget.

With that, I’ve narrowed it down to a three potential choices.

Two are very similar:

Nest Love Bed
Brooklyn Bedding #BestMattressEver

While the third is a little different:

Nest Alexander Select

I’ve tried the Alexander in store (when I was on vacation, no less!) and quite liked it. I’m not sure it’s worth the extra 40% cost, however.

Before I go ahead and make my purchase – and I don’t feel like I can make a bad decision here – are there any latex mattresses made by larger retailers that might be similar to the Love Bed or the #BestMattressEver for an in-person point of comparison? I realize this might be hard to approximate, but any input is welcomed!

I do like that the Love Bed has a 1.5" of foam in the top layer, which I think might help with motion transfer and comfort as compared to the #BestMattressEver. It might be the way to go, and the customer service at Nest has been excellent on the phone and in person (although I wonder if they’re having e-mail problems with their info e-mail account again?).

Hi RJ29,

[quote]Two are very similar:

Nest Love Bed
Brooklyn Bedding #BestMattressEver

While the third is a little different:

Nest Alexander Select

I’ve tried the Alexander in store (when I was on vacation, no less!) and quite liked it. I’m not sure it’s worth the extra 40% cost, however.

Before I go ahead and make my purchase – and I don’t feel like I can make a bad decision here – are there any latex mattresses made by larger retailers that might be similar to the Love Bed or the #BestMattressEver for an in-person point of comparison? I realize this might be hard to approximate, but any input is welcomed![/quote]

There is more about the 3 most important parts of “value” of a mattress purchase in post #13 here which can help you make more meaningful quality/value comparisons between mattresses in terms of suitability (how well you will sleep), durability (how long you will sleep well), and the overall value of a mattress compared to your other finalists based on suitability, durability, and all the other parts of your personal value equation that are most important to you (including the price or course and the options you have available after a purchase)

You can see some comments about the about the Love Bed and the Best Mattress Ever and the Alexander in post #2 here that may be helpful and a forum search on best mattress ever alexander love bed (you can just click the link) will bring up all the forum posts that mention all three of them as well.

There is more information in post #9 here about the different ways that one mattress can “match” or “approximate” another one. Every layer and component in a mattress (including the cover) will affect the feel and performance of every other layer and component and the mattress “as a whole” so unless you are able to find another mattress that uses exactly the same materials, components, and design (which would be very unlikely) then there really isn’t a way to match one mattress to another one in terms of “comfort” and PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal preferences) based on the specifications of the mattress.

Mattress manufacturers generally try to differentiate their mattress from the mattresses made by other manufacturers and don’t normally try to “match” another mattress that is made by a different manufacturer so while you may find similar mattresses that use “similar” materials or designs … it’s very unlikely that you will find another mattress that is specifically designed to “match” or “approximate” either one of the mattresses you mentioned in terms of PPP so the only way to know how two mattresses compare for you in terms of how it “feels” or in terms of firmness or PPP would be based on your own careful testing or actual sleeping experience on both of them.

When you can’t test a mattress in person … then the most reliable source of guidance is always a more detailed phone conversation with a knowledgeable and experienced retailer or manufacturer that has your best interests at heart and who can help “talk you through” the specifics of their mattresses and the properties and “feel” of the materials they are using (fast or slow response, resilience, firmness etc) and the options they have available that may be the best “match” for you based on the information you provide them, any local testing you have done or mattresses you have slept on and liked or other mattresses you are considering that they are familiar with, and the “averages” of other customers that are similar to you. They will know more about “matching” their specific mattress designs to different body types, sleeping positions, and preferences (or to other mattresses that they are familiar with) than anyone else.

I’m not so sure that the thickness of the quilting layer will have the effect you think it will since all the layers and components of a mattress (including the cover) will affect the feel and performance of all the other layers and the mattress “as a whole” so unless you have a great deal of knowledge and experience in the industry about how different types and combinations of materials feel to you in “real life” it’s unlikely that you will be able to predict how a particular combination of materials that are similar to each other will feel to you or which of them would be better than the other in terms of motion separation than the other. Both the Best Mattress Ever and the Love Bed have a cover that is quilted with polyfoam and latex comfort layers (which will have a bigger effect on motion isolation than the cover).

Latex is very point elastic and is “good” for motion isolation so it’s unlikely this would be an issue for most people with a mattress that uses latex comfort layers but memory foam is also better at motion isolation than latex so a mattress like the Alexander has memory foam comfort layers would probably be better at motion isolation than a mattress that has latex comfort layers. Of course it would also be a less durable choice and would have a less resilient sleeping surface and “feel” than a latex/polyfoam hybrid as well. There is more about how latex compares to memory foam in post #2 here.

Phoenix