Does it sometimes seem like the entire internet is nothing but a vast blank plane populated entirely by hip tech bros trying to sell you a seemingly fancy mattress? That’s because it is!
In a piece about the internet mattress boom, CNBC talked to Michael Magnuson of review site GoodBed.com, who estimated there are “around 175 bed-in-a-box companies.” That’s so, so many—although only the biggest names are really making a huge dent in the $16.5 billion mattress industry to sweat. What’s more, they’re all practically the same damn mattress, when you get right down to brass tacks:
“The products that you’re buying — there are many similarities and only some minor differences,” said Seth Basham, an analyst at Wedbush Securities who covers the mattress industry. He said that the core of the mattresses at different companies often use the same foam. “The different layers — what goes on top of what, can differ. But the big difference is how they’re being sold and marketed.”
Feeling stressed? Same! And we’re not alone, either!
But all the different offerings might just overwhelm consumers, said David Srere, co-CEO of branding agency Siegel+Gale.
“It’s the amount of information. There’s just too much,” he said. “If you go online, not only do all of them look alike, but they’re all talking about their different products. If I tell you that my mattress is special because it’s infused with copper gel, does it mean anything to you?”
I need to replace my mattress, which has begun making alarming metallic noises every time I roll over, but out of sheer logistical paralysis I will do it the old-fashioned way: wandering around a mattress store, trailed by a sales clerk, stretching out on mattresses until I get tired and just buy literally whatever.