Hi nissanman,
Just to add a little to your post … the Healthy Choice mattresses (they used to be at www.healthychoicemattress.com which now forwards to the new site) are made by Restopedic under contract and is part of the reason they don’t make exact duplicates of other mattresses that they make under contract or do custom layering with more than 2 layers (a single support layer with a softer comfort layer over top). Manufacturers that sell both factory direct and also wholesale to retail outlets can walk a very fine line with this.
While the materials they use are high quality, I agree with you that their pricing is very high and their 11" “Violet” mattress (same thickness as CSD) is $3499 in queen (mattress only) which is more than the price of the custom designed and zoned CSD. Having said that … it (the Violet) does have an interesting layering that uses a “dominating” thinner 2" layer of firmer latex over 3" of softer latex which would have a unique and interesting feel. The Rose uses more traditional layering patterns with softer layers over firmer layers throughout the mattress. The pricing seems to be geared more towards a NY market where they also have an outlet.
There is more about Healthy Choice here, and here, and here, and here. While they would certainly be interesting to test … I would be a little hesitant to buy there unless a “sale” justified it and the mattress was absolutely “perfect” compared to others I had tried.
Phoenix
Alright, here’s what I’ve got:
Restropedic - Joe struck me as a nice guy and a straight shooter. He has his factory open to the public and a few mattress set-up to lay on. He doesn’t have much of a selection layed-out (only one latex mattress, which was all 36 at about 9 inches) but he let me lay on a 36-30-24 that he had just made for a customer and it seemed to be good quality and I found it comfortable. He quoted me $1275 for a queen w/out the platform. Delivery to New Britain was another $50. All-in-all, I would say they are a good bet if you already know what you want in your mattress.
Comfort Sleep Systems - I wish I could say! We drove all the way out there and they had a closed sign on there door with an explanation that there was a family sickness. Bummer.
Custom Sleep Design - Really impressive. Bob was very nice and very helpful. He spend quite a bit of time taking us around the different mattresses and ‘fitting’ my wife and I. We both noticed a pretty big difference in the comfort of their product. I have fairly wide shoulders and narrow hips and I’m a side sleeper, so I tend to toss and turn a lot due to the pressure points and misalignment my sleeping position creates. There approach to designing a mattress around this issue was really appealing. Also, Bob promised that they would send us replacement layers at no cost and with no need to return the old layers until the mattress met out needs just right. He even went so far as to say that they offer this service for 90 days, but if it takes longer, than there still won’t be a charge, which sold me. The queen set costs $3,200 with delivery (and I believe tax as well), but there was a Memorial Day sale at 10%, as well as our MattressUnderground 5%, and we decided we didn’t need the platform, saving another $250. So we were able to get the mattress for 2,666.72, which was pretty nice. Bob said to expect 4 weeks. I know a lot of people are curious about the mattress and there aren’t a ton of reviews out there, so in a few months I promise I’ll offer a review.
Thanks again for the help. I feel great about our choice, and I never would have known where to look and what to look for if not for you guys…and the savings were pretty sweet too! Thanks! 
Hi matpro171,
Congratulations on your new mattress
It’s too bad you weren’t able to give a “report” on Comfort Sleep Systems and I hope that whatever the family illness is that things work out all right.
As you know … I like the zoning system that Bob uses and it’s especially effective for more “difficult” body shapes and/or sleeping positions
You did well!
Phoenix
Sounds like you have a looong 4 weeks ahead of you! Maybe he’ll make my pillow I ordered when he gets your Mattress done too (been about 4 weeks since I ordered the test pillow from him). I’m glad you found the right one matpro, I look forward to your next post about the bed itself :woohoo:
Finally made it out to CSS today. Joan and Dave were very nice to deal with. Non pushy, could answer my questions when I had them and didn’t try to make stuff up. Not that I would expect that from a place like CSS, but you never know until you’re there! Their showroom had all the mattresses I wanted to try out on display and easy to get to. All their latex stuff is on one side of the showroom and their more traditional stuff on the other, not confusing at all. I am definitely comfortable enough with their business to send my wife in to try out the mattresses as well. Based on what I felt they have 3 options that could work for me (Hy’Bed, Ultra and Outrageous). I’ll wait for my wife’s input before narrowing it down any more.
If you’re in CT, it is worth the trip to check them out vs the high dollar low value chains all over the place. Ironically there are two of those places in either direction from the CSS showroom…
Just curious :
Can you tell me what you thought of the Hy’Bed?
Was the feel of it soft, medium, or firm?
Would you happen to know how many inches of latex on top and what the ILD was?
The Hy’bed is similar to the Outrageous but with the core latex replaced with inner springs. The top 3 layers, 2" of latex (medium) 1" of soft latex and then a cusion layer of foam on the very top. It felt firmer than their Ultra Performance model, but softer than their Tranquility model. Compared to other inner spring mattresses it felt pretty good. I’d put the feel of it around medium for overall firmness. Since they build them there, you could ask for a softer or firmer layer to be used instead of their default setup too. If you absolutely need to know the ILDs I’m sure Dave would tell you on the phone
If I ranked the three mattresses they have still on my list… Ultra, Hy’bed then Outrageous.
Finally got the wife to look at some mattress… I can finally get her opinion after work tonight! One step closer to figuring out what mattress will work for both of us. Hopefully I can also share a 2nd opinion of CSS too, she went there without me (obviously). Will post her opinions about them and their product soon B)
Hi nssanman,
I’m looking forward to your “dual” feedback.
I have to laugh too because I know from my own experience how hard it can be sometimes to do the same thing at the same time with the one you actually live with. One day maybe we’ll all have less time constraints in our lives and can spend more time doing all the things we want to do together
Thanks again too for all the reviews and information you’ve added to the forum.
Phoenix
If I knew my wife would be so speechless about shopping for a mattress I’d do this more often! All joking aside, I’m fortunate that she seems to be comfortable on a wide range of mattresses leaving my comfort as the deciding factor in this search. She had a pleasant experience at CSS, and had the opportunity to try out Latex over innerspring, All Latex, and All Latex with a plush comfort layer too. She felt a little difference between them, but said all three were comfortable for her. Her favorite was the Ultra Performance model they sell Product Catalog :: Comfort Sleep Systems and the Hy"Bed at #2 and the Outrageous unnecessary.
So now it’s up to me Looks like I’ll need to visit them again with some $$$ in hand for a second “rest drive” and make a decision. If I’m comfortable… and she’s comfortable on the same mattress there is no reason to spend the extra and go with CSD at this point. At this rate I should be spending th 4th of July on a new mattress!
Hi nissanman,
That’s great news
I’m also very interested in what you end up choosing after all your great research and testing.
Phoenix
If all goes well, I should be rest driving the CSS mattresses again this Thursday! Fairly excited about this because if I still like it as much as the 1st time, one of their mattresses may just follow me home David and Joan have been great to deal with over the phone and I look forward to dealing with them in person again. I will update this post soon…
Pulled the trigger today :woohoo:
Went with the Ultra Performance from CSS. A made in the USA, CT assembled with CT Latex product. It would be very difficult for me to get any more local than that! Dave and Joan we a pleasure to deal with and even worked with me to cut off a potential issue with thte foundation too. In conversation I mentioned the style home I have and they were both concerned that a 1 piece would not fit up my stairs. Dave offered to upgrade me to a split foundation (at a fair ammount) that will be guaranteed to fit. I will have to pick up my foundation in the next few days, but until then I will be sleeping on the mattress… I reinforced my bedframe with 3/4" plywood a while ago. That’s a solid frame!
Can’t wait to update this thread with some sleeping impressions…
Hi nissanman,
Isn’t it great when something that we fall in love with follows us home! I remember once I made friends with the cutest cat that bonded with me and … Oops … wrong story …
What I meant to say was congratulations on your new mattress
You are an example of great research and also recognizing the value of a local manufacturer and the quality of products and service they can provide. It seems to me that you also met the requirements of your “value equation” (the things that are most important to you in terms of the product, people, and the outlet you are dealing with) perfectly.
I’m looking forward to your ongoing feedback.
Phoenix
1st night… I did not want to get up this morning :cheer:
And the wife didn’t complain either. So far so good!
Congrats, Nissman! I have to admit, I’m having a bit of buyers remorse with my Custom Sleep Design purchase…I’m still waiting!
The wait was supposed to be four weeks. I called two weeks in to be sure everything was on track and Bob assured me that it was. Four weeks in I didn’t hear from them, so I called and they said it will be there by the end of next week. It’s now the end of that week and I still hadn’t heard from them, so I just called again and they tell me it’s going to take another week and they refused to make any guarantee’s or even estimate a specific day. It’s a terrible feeling to drop that much money on a mattress and have them miss their mark so bad, as well as completely fail to keep me updated. I’ve had two pretty sour mattress purchasing experiences in the last 3 years and I wen’t with CSD in response to my disgust with that experience…so far they’re the worst offenders! I’m REEEALLY hoping the mattress itself will make up for the very bad customer service, and I’m kicking myself for not trying out CSS. We went their before CSD, but they were closed and the thought of making a separate trip back to CSS made CSD all the more appealing. I really hope I can write something better about them some time in the near future…wish us luck!
I hope for your sake that Bob comes through for you. So much of the business for local manufacturer’s is word of mouth… they need all the positive word of mouth they can get! On the positive side, if the new mattress is a home run in comfort for you, the bumps in the road waiting for it will all be forgotten
I will generally say to all local places, ALWAYS under promise and over deliver… never the other way around!
Hi matpro171 and nissanman,
I couldn’t agree with this more and even at the risk of the loss of a sale … this should be the case. While I certainly understand the occasional delay … when this starts to become a pattern then it also becomes an issue.
The CSD mattress is certainly unique and has a design that is both unusual, highly flexible, and can be very accurate for different needs and preferences not to mention has the ability to make ongoing changes after the purchase. All of this gives it great “value” IMO. No matter how unique or great a design, the ability to adjust it, or the value may be though … if delays and “overpromising” becomes the norm then the mattress itself becomes a secondary issue.
I hope to have more to say about this in a couple of days and there are some things in the background that I am hopeful will resolve this ongoing pattern of delays that should happen within the week. I will post here as soon as I know (or even don’t know) more.
Phoenix
So I talked to Bob again today…you guessed it - he gave me the CSD Shuffle…again. One more week. I’ve honestly lost count. I think this is the fifth consecutive week that he has promised next week. This time I made him give me a guarantee that I would be in my bed sometime next week. What should I do if they do it again? There is no competition for the kind of mattress they’re offering, or I would have jumped ship a long time ago. But I feel like I can’t justify paying this much for a bed that comes with this kind of headache when there are quality mattresses out there that could be delivered in a reasonable time period. Am I responding out of frustration, or is the fare response to cut my loses and look at other options?
Hi matpro171 … and any others that have been affected by the delays at CSD,
As you probably know I have been in regular communication with both Bob and his partner to satisfy myself about the specific reasons behind the delays and they have been open to the degree of sharing even some confidential information with me.
The source of course is the cash flow problems that are common with newer businesses that are expanding and the cycles of orders and minimum order requirements along with the expenses of expansion which lead to times of “being on time” and times of more lengthy delays which have been quite apparent in their manufacturing and delivery cycles. There have been two separate steps that they have been working on for some time that would resolve in one case the shorter term delays and in the second case the longer term delays that could come from further growth. Some of this has been compounded by delays in commitments that were made to them.
I talked with Bob on two occasions today (and last week as well) and he confirmed today that the first of these steps or solutions has now been confirmed which will lead to the fulfillment of all outstanding orders and out the door within the week (including the ordering of any materials necessary and the making of the mattresses that are in the pipeline). Of course I intend to keep in touch until this has actually happened.
This has been a very frustrating experience and time for both CSD, his customers, and quite frankly me as well and I have to also say that I have had some very “direct” conversations with them about the need to keep his customers up to date … even when there is no news to report. He agreed that they have not done a good job at this. They took the approach that they would call when there was some specific news and when things were delayed for them as well this led to customers having to initiate contact with them which only compounded the level of frustration and customers not knowing what to believe.
I would be surprised and shocked if this was more of the “CSD shuffle” and the conversations today with both me and his outstanding customers didn’t happen as expected but to answer your question directly … if it isn’t correct … I would be the first to recommend a refund request.
I have known them for some time (since well before this site was started) and I think highly of them, their integrity, and the mattresses they make (in spite of my serious frustrations and concerns about their lack of communication in difficult times and the message this was sending to their customers). As has already been mentioned … underpromising and overdelivering is a much better way to operate. While some of the “promises” were made because of committments made to them that took longer than expected … I believe they have heard and taken to heart the message that a phone call to customers affected by delays … even with nothing specific to report … is the best approach to these types of situations.
So I would keep in touch with them and expect direct and accurate answers and I will do the same until this can be talked about in the past tense and is just an unfortunate story about what happened on the way to a larger business and better customer service and communication.
Phoenix