Who Can I Trust to Help Me Find A Mattress????

[phoenix]

Hello Lydia,

Welcome to the Mattress Forum!

I commend you for your fortitude and determination in trying to get to the bottom of the mattress industry scam. I also know that one can over-research and obsess and run the risk of not making a decision.

While I don’t share your opinion of the mattress industry being a scam, I certainly can share the frustration that many consumers face when trying to find objective information about the materials within a mattress from many brands, or educated and helpful comfort consultants to assist them through the process. And analysis-paralysis can be a real problem in learning about any product, which is why I recommend reading the information here like you would a good book, referring back to different areas over time and not attempting to memorize everything.

That said, I find myself debating about going back to Bloomingdale’s this weekend to purchase a bed during their President’s Day sale.

I’d advise caution with reading too much into the “discounts” offered by many retailers during sales events on holiday, especially the “50%-60% off” claims. Instead focus upon the final price you’re being asked to pay.

I purchased a Shiffman bed , their own make, from this Dept. store many years ago, after speaking with a knowledgeable and experienced salesperson who claimed he slept on the same make of bed himself.

Just to be clear, I think you’re referring to a model that Shifman makes exclusively for Bloomingdales, as opposed to Shifman being Bloomingdale’s own make. Some brands will produce “exclusive collections” for larger retailers, which may be anything from mattresses with different componentry compositions to mattresses using special ticks (covers) with different names.

As a general rule, I’d advise against using as a reliable indicator of the appropriateness of a mattress for yourself whether or not a salesperson has it at their home. I am asked this often, and my advice is to not use my preference as guidance for anyone else.

Shffman mattresses can be turned over, which certainly prolongs the life of the bed.

All things being equal, a two-sided mattress certainly have a longer comfort life than a one-sided counterpart using the same materials. The key of course is to keep up with your rotations and take advantage of that ability to flip the product as well as rotate it.

The bed itself is well made, and did not break down as described by many of the writers (did not sag in the middle , and to this day the sides are also pretty firm

I’m glad your mattress has held up well. Shifman makes a wide variety of products, some using better materials than others. I’m glad the one you chose worked well for you.

But the bed is old by industry standards (14 years!) and I have been noticing backaches. I only hesitate to purchase another Shiffman as the feel of the mattress was never as comfortable as when I slept on Stearns and Foster.

An older mattress certainly can contribute to backaches, but of course may not be the only cause of your pain. With that being said, you have benefitted from quite a few years of use out of your current mattress.

I would be very cautious about store/brand shopping in general because you are buying a specific mattress, not the brand, and most manufacturers have access to the same or similar components and materials. Many manufacturers make a wide range of mattresses that can vary from lower quality and less durable materials to higher quality and more durable materials in a wide range of prices. The name of the manufacturer or store on the label or the price of the mattress won’t tell you anything about whether a specific mattress is suitable for you in terms of “comfort”, firmness, and PPP or whether there are any lower quality materials or weak links in the design that would affect the durability and useful life of the mattress. There is more about the risks of brand shopping in post #5 here and post #12 here.

I too have done too much research, and read that Stearns and Foster do not last very long in relation to other mattresses

Unfortunately, the major brands such as Sealy/Stearns & Foster, Simmons, and Serta all tend to use lower quality and less durable materials in their mattresses than most of their smaller competitors, and these materials will tend to soften or break down prematurely relative to the price you pay, which is why I would generally suggest avoiding all of them completely regardless of how they may feel in a showroom (you can’t feel quality or durability) along with any mattress where you aren’t able to find out the type and quality/durability of the materials inside it (see the guidelines here along with post #3 here and post #12 here and post #404 here). The current Stearns & Foster mattresses are very different from the old line of 20+ years ago.

I only thought about returning to Blooomingdale;s based on my experience with my current mattress, plus having had other positive experiences purchasing furniture in the past from this Dept store. If trust is the issue, they can be trusted to do the right thing by their customer.

Many people prefer to do business with a particular store where they have a history as an important part of their personal value equation. Even so, you’ll want to make sure that you learn the information listed here so you can compare the quality of the materials and components to the durability guidelines here to make sure there are no lower quality materials or weak links in a mattress that would be a cause for concern relative to the durability and useful life of a mattress before making any purchase.

Question: Can the administrators from this website contact Joe for follow-up? (I don’t stay in hotels that often, but have had very good nights’ sleep in the more expensive hotels. Or is that because I am on vacation? LOL

I’m sorry, but I don’t contact members personally to ask for their input, but you’re certainly welcome to do so via the forum if you desire.

IF anyone else can comment on specific mattress manufacturers that supply high-end hotels, that would be very helpful. Thanks very much!

When you’re sleeping better at a hotel, it’s more often than not an indicator that your current mattress is in poor condition, as opposed to the appropriateness for you of the specific mattress you tried at the hotel. Some people certainly do prefer a firmer innerspring product, which is commonly what is found at hotels. And it may be because of what you said - that you were on vacation!

Most hotels purchase mattresses via the contract bedding divisions of mattress companies. These mattresses will tend to be on the firm side, with extra plushness derived from the top-of-bed products the hotels use. These mattresses don’t tend to use higher-quality componentry, as hotels have to change them out quite frequently due to use/abuse. Hotel chains often “brand shop” and can switch from one manufacturer to another depending upon the price quoted. Even if you found out the specific model of mattress that a hotel used and it was available to you (a new revenue source that some hotels have recently started to exploit), I wouldn’t recommend purchasing one of these products unless you knew all of the information I linked to earlier in my reply about what is inside of the mattress.

Phoenix