Las Vegas Winter Market 2012, my summary

Let me be frank with you.  If you’re easily offended, you may want to stop here.

I told a few people “I’m really not sure why I’m here.”  The positives of market were seeing a lot of people I haven’t seen lately.  I like hugs.  It was good to see everyone.  That is about where it stops.  The only cool new thing I saw was Pure Latex Bliss’ new stuff.  I’m excited to bring the new products in as soon as I have room.  I also loved their new display.  They have done more with the slow response latex (feels like visco).  They also have a new bonded core that they have talalay over.

Simmons, the new stuff felt good.  I did not like some of the tailoring.  Apparently it didn’t matter if I liked it or not, because “You’re going to put sheets on it.”  I know this, you know this, but when you touch the side, it feels terrible.  They use tennis shoe material for the border of the mattress.  They also use some on the top.  When you touch it on the top, it feels awful.  If you were to get in that bed in the summer in a store, with shorts on, you’d feel the roughness.  I told them I didn’t like it and I didn’t think it would work.  I was told I was wrong.  Ok, fine.  I won’t buy it.  Good luck with that one.

Side note, does everyone remember the black fleur de lis covers I said were terrible too?  Where did they go?  Oh yeah, they didn’t sell.  “You won’t see it when you put sheets on it!”  Right.

Serta iComfort.  Oh Serta.  It took a lot for me to bring you in to start with.  Then I pull up and see a banner the size of my house that says “Not another cheap ass knock off.”  Guess who didn’t come through your doors to see the new product?  This girl.  That is tacky.  I say that as the woman who has her quote plastered on everything Vegas related for Latex Bliss.  I used the word “bastardized.”  The difference is, we use bastardized in this industry all the time.  We don’t ever use “cheap ass,” unless it is in relation to a poly bunkbed matt.  It was tacky.  It was offensive.  I would love to see the men that sat around in that board room laughing when they came up with it.  “Any publicity is good publicity.”  Not when it turns your customers off to the point they refuse to set foot in your showroom.  Marketing woman here, how did anyone think that was a good idea?

Comfort Solutions/Dr. Breus beds.  They’re foam all the way through.  They felt good, but to me it is Kingsdown all over.  Well, except they were all wearing hockey jersey’s and jeans.  I didn’t really like that either.  I suddenly felt over dressed.  It was hokey.

Speaking of Kingsdown, all their new stuff was foam all the way through.  They look like innerspring though.  While I admire the technology from Kingsdown, I feel like they have gotten too far away from the original.  Last night I slept at my parents.  In my hand tufted coil on coil mattress that I’ve had from Kingsdown for over ten years.  It feels amazing.  It has hand encased coils.  It is something to write home about.  What happened to those?  Even their mack daddy bed that they had in the front window wasn’t adjustable compatible.  If someone can spend that much on a mattress, they want it on an adjustable base.

I feel in the next five years in this industry, we are going to have some major failures in consumer bedding.  All these poly cores under gel, visco, latex, what have you.  I really think we’re going to have a mess.  I know some of the companies test the stuff really well before releasing it, but I don’t think they all do.  I’m also curious about the health risks we’re putting ourselves on with all these chemicals being used to make gel, visco, what have you.

I got the e-mail about the Bedding Forecast meeting an hour after it was over.  Maybe it is because I’ve been trying to take care of my Mom for the past few weeks and not totally up on industry stuff, but I didn’t know about it.  I would have been there.  The WithIt talk that I was going to go to the same afternoon, I had to miss it for another bedding meeting (a good one actually).  When I read the tweets, it was very interior design based.  I’m glad I didn’t go.  That isn’t my ball of wax.  Ladies, we can do a lot more in this industry than interior design and marketing.  Get in to bedding!  They need you.  I speak as loudly as I can and they still try to ignore me, but I’m not giving up.

DreamFit has a new starting model sheet that I loved.  It is microfiber.  I can’t wait to get those switched over.  (Its bad when about the only thing I got excited about was sheets, we know that isn’t my style).

Kluft had some beautiful things as always.  Felt great too.  I passed Jane Seymour in the showroom.  She is putting her name behind his new 7×7 mattress (that is in feet).  I worry about sheets, frames, and headboards, but I’m tickled Earl is trying to start something new.  I think it is a great idea and know plenty of very tall men that would agree with me.  I think he is doing great things for the industry.  He has grown when a lot of other companies have not.  It was nice to meet his daughter.  Another woman on the bedding side!  Yayyy.

Anatomic has been bought by Fomex (I think, I hope that is correct?), they have some very cool new pillows and some stuff that feels awesome.  They’re a big part of something much bigger than they were before.  It will be interesting to see the differences the change in ownership make.

New Energy had one new daybed to show me.  Our Nightfall cherry will now be available in white.  It looked good.

Hillsdale, had a lot of nice new headboard and footboard combos.  I’ll probably bring in a few more from them.

Then there were rumors about the health of some companies.  Frankly they scare me.  It isn’t something I am putting here in print, there could be legal consequences.  I’ll just say that it is making me consider other options for the future.

I don’t know if I will go to Vegas for market again.  The lack of buses causing me to have to take a cab everywhere put a hurting on my pocket.  It was fun, but I don’t really know what I got out of it.

Then last night on Twitter I read World Market Center talking about it being the “best market ever!”  From the bedding side, that isn’t how I saw it.  I hope everyone else got more out of it than I did.  Leave your thoughts in the comments.

 

 

 

The inability to count these days

We have a new POS system.  So far, it is going great.  Except for how things are put on it and how people interpret those.  Last week Maurice ordered 1 Split Queen Adjustable bed.  He meant that he needed the entire queen bed.  He got one side of it.  As he said “If I had ordered two, they would have sent me four.”  Then yesterday, we had ordered seven cases of pillows in Raleigh, we got 32.  I have used my fingers and toes to count, and cannot make seven turn in to 32.

I was curious why Maurice called to ensure that the 15 pillows he ordered was not 15 cases, then the 32 cases of pillow thing happened, and I understood.

New Energy use to be great about this.  They would read our order and if it didn’t make sense they would call and ask.  Another manufacturer we use (no names, but made in the USA), will let us get two headboards or three rails.  All kinds of things.  Sometimes we accidentally order them.  Other times they throw it in for us.

Oh the adventures of orders.

 

Let me guess, its blue?

Gel.  More gel.  Gel sprinkles, gel balls, liquid gel, gel in candy stripes, gel sewn in with thread.  Lord have mercy.  When our industry finds something new everyone runs with it.  Well, not everyone.  I respected the manufacturer that said “We aren’t sure how well it holds up or ages yet.”  A question I’d asked numerous folks and was told “Oh it’ll be fine.”  I know you don’t know.  I don’t know how we’d simulate ten years of age.  I know how we’d do ten years of wear.

Other than that I shopped a lot of furniture.  I mean a LOT.  Saw a lot of nice stuff.

Our legislative meeting never happened.  I haven’t followed up to see why yet.  A bunch of us showed up and yet there was no one else there.  If it was started by e-mail, it could have been finished with it.

My favorite things I saw-  The slow response latex.  Feels a lot like visco, without all the bad stuff.  The new drop foot adjustable base and the six way adjustable base.  Both were very impressive.  The feel was awesome.  Like sitting in a recliner.  I liked Anatomic’s mounting system that went with the base.  That is going to put them a step ahead.  iComfort was impressive.  I see what the fuss is about.

Just a lot going on with my stores.  We’re renovating one to make it bigger.  Working on some special things with another.  Looking at another space.

As far as my house goes.  Its still under construction.  Needless to say, life has been hectic, but it keeps me out of trouble.

I think it was a successful market.

 

Tom McLean

Tom dropped me a note the other day that he had retired, again.  More officially this time I suppose.  It makes me a bit sad.  I think I’ve known him for fifteen years, and I’m only twenty-seven.  I may have known him a bit longer.  He has forgotten more about sleep than most people have learned in their lifetime.  In the industry there are a few outstanding people who want to see change and want to see younger people move up.  He is one of those.  I think back of the number of papers he helped me with in college.  It seems I was always writing a paper on sleep.  Imagine that.  It is what I know.  He is one of my favorite people to run in to at market, or at Kingsdown, or in Monaco.  Whenever someone asks me how I am, if I respond “Fantastic!” I think of Tom.  He is always so positive.  He was the perfect person for the position he is leaving.  Of course he is also the perfect person for the position he is filling in retirement.  I’m sure he is a fantastic grandfather!  Now lets just hope he doesn’t drive Holt too crazy.  I won’t be a bit surprised to run in to him somewhere business related again, and I hope I do.  I hope I run in to him on a boat before then.

Tom, enjoy your retirement.  Thank you for all the things you have taught me over the years.  Thank you for your support.  Thank you for being a wonderful mentor, not only to me, but to a lot of folks in the industry.  May we all strive to be as positive as Tom, everyday.

I’m alive!

Summer is a really busy time of the year for me.  Our business picks up.  Our advertising picks up.  I work more at my second job (bartender).  Throw in to the mix of that buying a new house that needs a lot of work.  Needless to say, I have not blogged much lately.  I have also been pretty terrible at keeping up with industry news.  I don’t go to Vegas market in the summer because it is just too hot and I am just too busy.  I have very little to say really.  Except I have been invited to a market event that I am truly excited about.  I’ll write more about that when I know more details.

I am very excited for High Point market.  I love fall.  I love football.  I love High Point.  I feel like we get a lot done there.  I’m going to make a true effort to get better at blogging.  I hope everyone is well!

My new Zeo

I ordered a Zeo yesterday.  I have looked in to it many times, but never gone through with it.  I saw a tweet about something, and it was like it was the first time I’d heard of it.  (Obviously it wasn’t, but for some reason my interest was renewed).

My big question was if you can have multiple users.  The best I can tell, you just have to keep track of the nights you would like other people to use it.  I know Dad will want to.

It comes in today.  I can’t wait!  My sleep geekiness is going to increase.  I’m really interested on those nights that I work until 4am.  I’d love to see how my sleep cycle is after that.

Sealy Lawsuit over mattress staining

When I sell a mattress, as a retailer I am always very specific that “You must protect your mattress from staining to protect your warranty.”  I also tell the customer where they will find the warranty info, that they need to keep their paperwork, and give them suggestions on where to put that paperwork (in a plastic bag between the mattress and the box).

This never had to make it to being a huge lawsuit.  It would have saved them a lot of money to concede to the customer.  It would have saved Mattress Warehouse a lot of grief too.

This goes back again to a conversation a few of us were having on Twitter yesterday.  Warrantys are too long!!

Maybe in my lifetime I will see the decrease in the mattress warranty.  I’m an eternal optimist.

Kingsdown suing Comfort Solutions- My opinion

Go ahead and get offended if you like (I’ve worked too many hours this weekend, and don’t really care).

Having seen both systems and having dad involved in the development of one, I wonder what took so long on this.

You cannot leave one place where you developed one thing and create a version of it somewhere else and then be surprised someone is suing you.

I have BodySystem, or Dormo, or Dormo Diagnostic, or mySide, or whatever we are calling it this week in my stores.  I love it.  I think it does a great job diagnosing the customer and getting them to tell you things they wouldn’t otherwise.  Is it a bit of smoke and mirrors?  Of course, but there is a lot of science behind some of that smoke.  Does CS’s program get the same qualifications?  Probably.  Do they have close to the number of profiles?  Heck no.

I can’t for the life of me remember if there is a weight question on the CS profile.  If there is, you cannot expect people to answer that correctly.  Kingsdown’s system actually doing the weight measurement, so it doesn’t have to be discussed.

Here is the bad thing- I like every party involved in this suit.  I don’t like the CS system, I haven’t since the first time I saw it.  Actually, I’m pretty sure I scared my rep the day I saw it.  It is a preference though.  Choices are a good thing.
I am very grateful to Comfort Solutions for making the XL product, so I can sell that bigger customer something.  Because I sure don’t want to sell them Kingsdown.

I hope the suit works out ok for both parties, but no side ever wins in an issue like this.  Just the attorney’s win.

Bedding Conference

I really should thank Leggett as I sit here and blog with my iPad 2 from my Papa’s hospital room. It was wonderful seeing everyone last week. I can’t say it was the best conference we’ve had but it was ok. Dr. Maas was amazing as always. I always learn something new from him. I will upload pictures when I get back home. I spent maybe 36 hours there before we found out my Grandfather was rushed to the hospital. He had an intestinal loop. They cut him open last night at about 5 pm. Mom and I got here at 3. He is doing very well to be 87.

It is funny because we learned so much last week about sleep deprivation. I was getting caught up on my spindles. That has all gone down hill now. My uncle’s cat found it necessary to play in the blinds all night. I’m allergic to cats too. Tonight is my night to sleep in the hospital. My sister is sending my eye mask with someone and my pillow. That should help.

My step Grandma asked where I was working from this week. I said “I guess right here.”. I may make a visit to Raleigh while I’m this close. Then again I have a feeling I’m going to be a tad on the crazy side tomorrow.

Will discuss more on the bedding conferene later. Have a good week y’all. Be thankful for your health.

4-16-11 Tornadoes

Yesterday I was at the Western Blvd. store near Cary.  We knew there was bad weather coming, but I honestly didn’t expect it to be that bad.  One of my employee’s (and very good friend) Andrew Cagle had stopped by because he was moving and knew I was in town.  Dad was there, because he was supposed to work for me so I could go to my Step Grandmother’s 80th birthday.  When I realized how bad the weather was to get there, I realized I wasn’t going to be able to go.  Before it got bad, Dad ran to Harris Teeter (anyone take a gander at what he needed? then to Auto Zone to get more RainX.  He parked my truck in front of the store.  He came back inside.  Then it started hailing.  So what does he do?  He goes and gets back in my truck to roll it up on the porch so the hail won’t mess up my paint.  Then he realizes he can’t get out because he is parked between the columns.  All of the sudden the sky goes blacker than it has been.  I mean, jet black.  So I try to run out the front door to get him out of the truck.  Andrew tells me to go back in and he’ll get Dad.  Dad finally comes in.  My heart was beating through my chest and I thought I was going to throw up.  In the mean time the power had been flickering off and on.

Andrew decides he is ready to leave and take David (one of my delivery guys) with him to help him move some stuff.  I told them they weren’t going anywhere until everything cleared out better.  I was thanked for this later in the evening.  Andrew arrived to his new house that he had just moved in to, to find a tree had fallen on his neighbors house.  If it had gone the other way, it would have been his house.

Dad and I called the other stores.  Oscar at Capital said all the power was out downtown.  I started getting bombarded with texts, but to check the times they were all 18 minutes later.  The cell phone systems were overloaded.  We decided at that time to close the stores and send everyone home to check on their families.

Dad and I pull out of the driveway to find the intersection ahead of us has no stop lights and the intersection behind us is closed because of a tree.  We were in the 5500 block, the bad wind damage was in the 5300 block.  Best I can tell from the map, the black was from the tornado going across the 5300 block.

We start down 40.  There was a tree in the highway near South Saunders street.  It started pouring again about Jones Sausage road, we stopped for a minute.  Then went on.  Dad was watching the radar on his phone.  When we got to 331 there was an over turned tractor trailer in the west bound lane and a swath of damage 200 yards wide across a field and across the highway.  That is the second pink line down on the map.  You could see emergency vehicles back to the right at homes that had been razed.  This wasn’t just a tractor trailer that delivers mattresses or furniture or something.  It was one of those big ones that carries rock.

We kept listening to 101.5 and watching radar on the phone.  We stopped at Newton Grove, because I needed to potty.  There was no power, so I didn’t get to go.  We got back on the road.  There was some heavy rain.  As we approached Warsaw I said “That’s it, I’m stopping at the rest stop.”  As I got to the stoplight Dad’s phone refreshed.  He said “We have 15 minutes to get through Rose Hill before that cell goes.  Keep driving.”  That we did.  It wasn’t raining there.  It was sunny.  I was in the l left lane moving a bit more swiftly than I normally do.  As we got to Rose Hill, the rain started falling harder.  All the people on the highway started pulling off.  I told Dad “You watch the sky and the ditches and if I need to pull over and get in a ditch, we will, but I’m going to keep driving.”  You could see light on the other side.  It would be stupid to stop, but people were stopping.  I had my polarized glasses on, my rainx, and my knobby tires, I kept on moving.

As we approached Wallace, the wind got really, really bad.  I was struggling to stay in my lane.  Dad was on the phone with Christina.  A bad gust hit and he said “I love you gotta go bye.” and hung up.  I looked in my rear view mirror at Rose Hill behind me.  There was a perfect V shaped funnel cloud crossing the road about five miles back.  I said “Dad, look behind us.”  He did.  We didn’t say much for a little while.

It was really black ahead of us where he wanted me to get off at 416B.  I said “No, I’m going through Rocky Point.”  I took of there.  We got to Hampstead.  Checked on the dog.  She was happy to see us.  I think we were happier to see her.  Then guess what flashed across the screen on TV?  Tornado in Rocky Point.

I sat back at Mom and Dad’s for a while and ate potato cakes.  Then I came home to Topsail and told everyone I saw that I loved them.  I am so blessed to have great friends.  I hope everyone else is ok.  If anyone needs any help with anything, please let me know.  I’m very, very thankful to be ok and that my businesses, friends, and family are ok.

Mom and Christina came back a few hours behind us.  Luckily, they had an uneventful trip and are ok