I’ve hesitated too, and perhaps I’m glad I did. There’s a bit of a “too-good-to-be-true” worry in me. At first he seemed to dodge telling me what was in his beds other than saying “latex”. When I pressed and asked about Dunlop vs talalay, he said “whichever I want”… same price. When I asked about how many layers, it was “whatever I want”… same price. Then when I asked him to tell me exactly what company my talalay latex would come from, he seemed really unable to provide me that. I pressed and said either I know where it comes from, or I move on… I said, “for example, if it is Latex International latex or Radium, then you should be proud of that and let me know. If its not, just let me know what it is so I can do some research”. His response was actually kind of assuring, but then we get back to “too good to be true”. He told me that I could have “international latex” [sic] if I want… same price. I sent another email asking, “if by ‘international latex’, you mean Latex International, the company based in Connecticut that manufacturers talalay latex, then we can do business”. He responded indicating that’s what he meant, and he’d even show me the invoice to prove it.
But something still has me saying, “hmmm”. His claim is that the margins on latex beds are so high that it really doesn’t matter what goes in it, he’s making money. If that’s true, then fair enough. But if he’s telling you you’re buying one thing and putting in another… well…
So which is the case?
I emailed Latex International asking if there was anything particular about their latex that I could confirm, once its in my hands, that it is their product. Markings, tell-tale patterns, etc. No response yet. I think if there’s no way I could confirm it comes from them, then I won’t chance this transaction.
One other “fishy” statement he made: he claims he moves over 500 latex mattresses PER WEEK. How in the world could he be that busy and successful, yet he is the guy that answers the phone EVERY TIME, and he has the time to spend hour+ on the phone? I mean, that’s great customer service and all… just seems like either he’s not as busy as he says, or he’s got a time machine in the back. Or, I suppose, its possible he just has a super well-managed company and chooses to put his own time directly into customer sales calls while delegating the rest of the operation to others.
Bottom line, for me, is that trust becomes an important element when faced with the awkward proposition of purchasing something like a mattress online. Its not like you can just “send it back” if you’re not happy with it. At the very least, there’s rather huge shipping charges. It isn’t like the US where UPS ground is reasonably priced. I don’t think the online shopping model works here (Canada) for mattresses without an extremely high degree of confidence that you’re buying the item you want. And that’s difficult enough with mattresses without feeling uneasy about who you’re buying from.
That said… I’m screwed either way. I don’t trust my local store either after having extensive discussions with him. Things went sour quickly the last time I was in there. I think I annoyed him once I didn’t buy on my 2nd visit and came back with more research and questions. So I don’t want to buy from him either. And he’s the only one that fits this site’s criteria (ie. no big box names and no big name mattresses).
I am very close to just giving up, going to Sleep Country and buying a mid-low end bed (Restwell Haylee, pocket coil with some memory foam for $730) simply because my wife and I “liked it” twice. That is, we went into two different stores (both sleep country) and chose the same bed in both stores as one we liked. I’ve gotten to the point that all this research has left me well informed, but confused. And the options just don’t seem to exist where I am.
Sad 
I haven’t had a good sleep in months.
