Posted by Roger Cunningham on Mon, May 24, 2010 @ 04:08 PM
I wonder what the mattress industry would do if there were no Memorial Day Mattress Sales? What do mattresses and Memorial Day have to do with each other? Isn't it crass that we mattress moguls yell and scream about ficticious sales during a time set aside to show respect for people of honor that have laid down their lives to protect us? We should be ashamed of ourselves. Let's honor our dead and pray that they rest in peace for the wonderful contributions they have made in our behalf.
Thank you for each of you serving in our armed forces today. It seems you have a thankless job. I hope our country will have the decency to get back to remembering just what a price you pay. I love the mattress industry but it's time to restore honor to our profession. Let our Memorial Day mattress sales truly offer our veterans and service personnel true discounts not available to the general public. It's the least we can do.
Posted by Roger Cunningham on Mon, Mar 29, 2010 @ 11:08 AM
Just had my left rotator cuff operated on; torn in four places and bone spurs removed. After 56 years of living surgery free, I finally go under the knife. It seems "everybody" has had this surgery but me as I listened to one story after another of how painful it would be, but how great it felt after therapy. So, I got the surgery and outside the pain my big concern was how would I sleep. I am a constant mover and how was I going to find that perfect position to protect my shoulder and keep me out of pain.
Answer? I switched my bed to adjustable latex: the two hottest concepts going in sleep today. Latex is extremely pressure free and works in perfect conjunction with an adjustable base. I had it put in the day of surgery and when I returned home I simply put the bed in an upright position and sat down and laid back and WOW! I never had to move and I never felt any pain. STG! I could sleep and watch T.V. from my upright position and it was so easy to get in and out of the bed through the night. I think it is leading to a much faster recovery. I am going in for my first therapy session today and I'll keep you posted on how it continues to fare.
I hate that I had to have the surgery, but I have been wanting an adjustable bed for so long and my wife was resisting. She's not resisting now that she has had a chance to try it for herself. Do yourself a big favor and swith to adjustable latex and start experiencing the wonderful world of SLEEP.
You can purchase an adjustable latex bed for a lot less than you might think. Get into one of The Bed Store's eight Knoxville area showrooms today and start sleeping better tonight. We'll even tuck you in!
Posted by Roger Cunningham on Fri, Mar 12, 2010 @ 11:54 AM
Given the opportunity to answer the question: Would you rather rot your teeth or get a good night's sleep?, you would probably answer, get a good night's sleep. However the average American spends more than 19 times as much on soda pop than they do their mattress. It's a cold hard fact. Goes to show that we say one thing and then do another. How about you? The average price of a soda is about $1.39. The average American has two sodas per day bringing the total to $2.78. The average American spends 14 cents a night on their mattress if they purchase a new mattress every 10 years, and most don't. How about you?
I'm not advocating that you give up soda pop, although you might want to reduce your intake and keep your teeth. What I am advocating is to reconsider the way you think about purchasing a new mattress. You can own a top qualty mattress for less than 40 cents a night and experience exceptional sleep, not to mention wake up feeling relaxed, refreshed, and restored for a change. Is 40 cents a night really too much to invest in a great night's sleep?
Come into one of The Bed Store's eight Knoxville area showrooms and let our very caring and trained sales staff take you through your very own personal "sleep equation" and help you find your just right mattress. In over 90 percent of the cases, you'll spend less than 40 cents per night on the mattress that is just right for you. Isn't it time to get serious about a good night's sleep? We can help. In fact, mention that you saw this blog and we'll throw in a case of your favorite soda pop and a tube of your favorite toothpaste with your purchase. That's the kind of guys we are.
Posted by Roger Cunningham on Fri, Mar 05, 2010 @ 11:24 AM
Are you up to a midnight feast in bed? What if your were the feast? It's happening everynight, all over the country. BED BUGS are back and they are dying to "eat you." Bed bugs bite and suck blood from humans. Bed bugs are most active at night and bite any exposed areas of skin while an individual is sleeping. The face, neck, hands, and arms are common sites for bed bug bites. The bite itself is painless and is not noticed. Small, flat, or raised bumps on the skin are the most common sign; redness, swelling, and itching commonly occur. If scratched, the bite areas can become infected. A peculiarity of bed bug bites is the tendency to find several bites lined up in a row. Infectious disease specialists refer to this as the "breakfast, lunch, and dinner" sign signifying the sequential feeding that occurs from site to site.
Protect yourself. Start out with a fresh new mattress from The Bed Store and start using a "mattress protector" from the very start. Wash your mattress protector right along with your sheets. I recommend that you get two protectors so that you can put a fresh one on while you are laundering the other. Not only will this protect you from bed bugs, but also from the allergyns associated with dust mites. Mattress protectors insure your hygene while at the same offer protection for your mattress warranties by keeping your mattress free of spills and bodily fluids. No mattress should be without a mattress protector.
Isn't it time for a brand new "bed bug" free sleeping experience? Get into one of The Bed Store's eight Knoxville areal locations today and start sleeping better tonight.
Go to
http://www.medicinenet.com/bed_bugs/article.htm for a better education on bedbugs.
article.htm
Posted by Roger Cunningham on Thu, Mar 04, 2010 @ 11:57 AM
Don't get the wrong idea, I'm talking about mattresses here. A poor quality kingsized mattress could prove to be more comfortable and accomodating than a top quality full sized mattress. That's right. The difference the extra 24" in "stretch room" makes can change the way you sleep through the night.
The mattress industry has made a concerted effort to slowly phase out the double, regular, or full sized mattress over the past 30 years. Back in the day the full sized mattress was all the rage for two consenting adults. What were we thinking? A full sized mattress is the exact width of two crib mattresses side by side. Who came up with that formula?
Don't think that a king sized mattress does away with intimacy either. You can always meet in the middle or invite each other to "your" side of the mattress. Now I am not advocating a poor quality king size mattress for your next mattress purchase. I'm just saying when it's time for your new mattress, which it probably is, then consider upsizing to a king if your bedroom allows, or to a queen if not. Of course you need to select a feel and firmness that is "just right" for you. The right mattress can make all the difference in the world in the way you sleep and wake up the next day.
So, treat your queen to a king and deal yourself a winning hand. Check out the sleep experts at The Bed Store by coming into one of our eight East Tennessee locations today and start sleeping better tonight.
Posted by Roger Cunningham on Fri, Feb 19, 2010 @ 08:17 AM
We hear or see an advertisement for a particular sleep product being endorsed by some celebrity or noted organization and we are influenced to try that product for ourselves the next time we are in the market for a new mattress. What's that all about? Why are we so easily influenced by others that claim to "be in the know?"
It seems to me, unless we were actually sleeping with them, that we would want to chose our own mattress. What if we chose a mattress that we thought was "just right" for us and called our favorite celeb or organization and recommended it to them. Do you think they would rush right out and purchase one for themselves? Would they trust us to pick there mattress for them?
Each year mattress companies pay orgainzations like Good Housekeeping, and celebs like Paul Harvey or some super athelete hundreds of thousands of dollars to indorse their particular sleep system and to influence your next purchase. The truth is, many of these organizations and celebs don't even sleep on the products they endorse. My question, then why do we?
The Bed Store's stand has always been to take each individual through their very own personal "sleep equation evaluation" and find out what mattress products were designed to handle those needs and desires. We vigoriously shop the mattress markets constantly throughout the year updating our line up to make sure that we offer the very best products within our customers preferred price ranges. We train our sales staff in the proper techniques to discover who our shoppers are and what best meets there own personal needs for years to come. Once we get it right, we offer a full one year customer satisfaction guarantee. The result, The Bed Store has over 70,000 satisfied customers and is East Tennessee's number one mattress dealer for over 18 years.
Don't let someone else pick your new just right mattress for you. Let The Bed Store make you your own celebrity and start sleeping better tonight. You'll wake up feeling totally relaxed, refreshed, and ready for the new day.
Posted by Roger Cunningham on Mon, Feb 15, 2010 @ 09:24 AM
Being a mattress blog, you might think my title, "too hard, too soft, just right" deals with the feel of the new mattress you are shopping for. Not this time. It actually refers to the shopping process itself. At The Bed Store, we are constantly searching for not only the right products at the best prices, but also for the very best way to present these products to our customers.
Our research reveals that the number one complaint from mattress shopping customers is that it is too confusing and that they DO NOT trust the salespeople. In fact, mattress salespeople are compared with "used car" salespeople. This grives me, but it is a truth that I must live with and try to remedy as I hire and train our sales staff. One axiom we live by is "never, ever lie to, steal from, or cheat" our customers. In fact, "the golden rule: do unto others as you would have them do unto you" is the underlying spirit of our business. So, this should pretty much take care of everything, right? Nope, not so fast.
Because I put a harness on our salespeople and don't allow them to "pressure" our customers into a "buying decision" they can come across "too soft," therby not assisting you complete the sale, once they have actually helped your find your "just right" mattress. Because you are so afraid of making the wrong decision, you simply decide to wait and think some more and once you do, the confusing process begins all over again and you search endlessly until some, perhaps ill intentioned, salesperson from one of our competitors and thereby end up with perhaps the wrong mattress and spending more than they needed or less than they should have to get the right mattress.
So, do I "tweak" their training and increase their tendency to "close the sale" once they get anywhere close to something you like? That would be the easy answer, and they could "make good money doing it." But then the tendency might be for them to become "too hard" in their saleing process, thinking more about "getting the deal" than helpin YOU find the very best mattress and the best price for your particular needs.
My answer, NO COMPROMISE! The Bed Store will continue to work this out, but we will NEVER compromise YOU, our valued customer. We will diligently work on finding the "just right" solution so that when you are in the market for your new mattress, you can shop The Bed Store with absolute confidence and assurance that you will be treated as we would want to be treated when we shopped for any new product that we wanted. You are worth the effort and besides, we want to sleep good at night too.
Posted by Roger Cunningham on Fri, Jan 22, 2010 @ 01:28 PM
Over my 35 plus years in the mattress business I have wondered which is more important to a customer if they could only choose one: a better mattress or a better price? I would venture to say that the spoken answer to this question may be different than the actual answer at time of purchase.
Most mattress companies advertise "mattress sales" where prices are up to 75% Off in order to attract traffic into their locations. This seems to indicate that a better price is more important to creating traffic. Once inside the dealers brick and mortar or virtual showroom the question of what is the "best deal" you have is asked; not that anybody actually believes the salesperson. But what of the actual mattress itself. Even if it really were 50% OFF, would it be the "right mattress" for you. If not, what's the point of getting a new mattress at all?
Let me recommend that you first find out what is the right mattress for your specific need. This is best done by finding a dealer you trust or that someone you know recommends. Then give them a chance to prove they are knowledgable and caring enough to actually help you discover the mattresses best suited to your needs. Then, and only then, inquire as to the best price available to you. This way you get both the better mattress and the better price which equals better sleep and a better YOU.
Posted by Roger Cunningham on Thu, Sep 17, 2009 @ 07:40 AM
I have just learned that Guy Fieri of the "Guy Fieri Road Show" will be a guest participant in "Sleep Green/Live United" bed race pitting contestants against each other for the best time in putting bedding on a bed. The winner will receive a FREE Better Homes & Gardens queen sized mattress set. All contestants will receive prizes ranging from HGTV DVD collections to Serta Sheep slippers. The contestant with the best overall time in making there bed will win The Better Homes & Gardens mattress set. Each contestant has the opportunity to buy 10 seconds off their time with a $10 donation to The United Way of Greater Knoxville. Also "Live United" T-shirts will be given away with a $5 donation.
Come meet Guy Fieri and have fun and try to win an amazing mattress by Better Homes & Gardens. Join us, won't you?
Posted by Roger Cunningham on Thu, Sep 10, 2009 @ 02:25 PM
In late September 2009 I will be hosting a "mattress brainstorming retreat" with some of the best minds in the business. We will leave our workaday worlds behind us and head up to a palatial retreet in the Great Smokie Mountains and kick back and talk about how to improve our products, our industry, and our presentations to the consumer. Each of the participants is passionate about the mattress business and were hand selected because of their passion and positions within the industry. To all of those pundants that think the entire mattress industry is void of passion and only in it for the buck, you are wrong. There are some great minds and some dedicated and passionate people in this industry and they are committed to helping change the way mattresses are perceived and sold. I love this business. I love knowing that I can help somebody have a better quality of life if they will let me assist them in finding their just right mattress. Look for some great things ahead in the way mattresses are marketed after our "Brainstorming in the Smokies" zen getaway.