Monthly Issue
From Home Furnishing Business
What Sells: Waking Up to Better Sales
January 27,
2024 by HFBusiness Staff in Business Strategy, Industry 
Of all home furnishings categories, the mattress segment seems to have the most potential for improving consumers’ wellbeing. After all, if you go a few extra months with an outdated sofa or dining room, it probably won’t affect your health—but the same can’t be said for a sagging mattress. Quality of sleep is now equated with quality of life. As consumers pursue their health and wellness goals, the consensus is clear from professionals across the healthcare continuum: uninterrupted, restorative sleep is essential.
The opportunity to tie mattress sales to health benefits is top-of-mind for today’s mattress manufacturers and suppliers. From new yarns and fibers to innovative adjustable bases, product features are being developed and marketed to entice consumers with health benefits. At Therapedic, these advancements are in the form of copper yarns and copper-powered fabrics proven to be absorbable by the skin for wellness benefits. “Our Immunity collection contains the highest copper content of any mattress made for consumers; it consists of copper woven into the fabric cover and infused in the mattress foam,” says CEO and president Gerry Borreggine. “Research shows that copper is anti-bacterial, anti-microbial, reduces inflammation, and may increase circulation, all benefits that appeal to consumers.”
At top price points, luxury models continue to benefit from this wellnessdriven market dynamic. “The consumer’s quest for a healthier sleep experience elevates the importance of the luxury mattress segment,” says Bill Hammer, president of Shifman Mattresses.
For Norway-based Stressless, its newest model—Sky—reflects decades of product knowledge and innovation. “At Ekornes we are not new to the mattress category,” says Peter Bjerregaard, president. We’ve been producing mattresses since 1937 and have a deep understanding of the factors that account for good sleep, and why it is essential for a healthy life. We have combined our extensive sleep insights with the Nordic lifestyle, which promotes good health in harmony with nature, to create the Stressless Sky.”
According to industry research and estimates from the FurnitureCore model developed by Impact Consulting Services, parent company to Home Furnishings Business magazine—sales in the bedding category declined in 2022. At year end, 2022 finished at $17.8 billion compared to $18.51 at the close of 2021. This 3.8% decline contrasts with the preceding 21.6% annual growth of the segment from 2020 to 2021.
Mattress sales in 2022 appear to be lost to other home furnishings categories as bedding’s percentage of total furniture industry sales also declined from 12.9% in 2021 to 11.8% in 2022. The downward trend continued in 2023, with sales down 3.5% year to date at the close of third quarter, with $13.44 billion in sales compared to $13.93 for the period in 2022.
