by Survey shows that younger consumers and baby boomers plan to buy at the highest rates
HIGH POINT — As any retailer knows, no analysis of consumer furniture buying plans would be complete without an overview on mattresses.
Thus, our latest installment of Consumer Insights Now delves into mattress buying plans for the first half of 2024 and the results are worth noting.
With this report, we looked at responses of 450 consumers who plan to buy a mattress for the primary bedroom, 185 who plan to buy a mattress for the guest bedroom and 110 who plan to buy a mattress for a child’s bedroom between January 2024 and June 2024. As with previous reports, the sample includes a mix of males and females ages 18 to 74 and a representative mix of generations, ethnicities, household incomes and homeowners/renters.
A key takeaway is that a quarter of all shoppers plan to buy a mattress for their primary bedroom during the first half. Of these, younger millennials (ages 28 to 35), Generation X (ages 36 to 43) and baby boomers (ages 60 and older) plan to buy at the highest rates, with 47% wanting to buy a queen-sized mattress and 32% wanting a king. One of three shoppers plans to buy memory foam. Another 26% plan to buy a hybrid, and 10% plan to buy an innerspring mattress. Another key takeaway? Almost a third of those surveyed weren’t sure what type of mattress they wanted, indicating that there is plenty of opportunity for retailers and salespeople to educate their customers.
Those consumers surveyed also plan to spend between $1,000 and $1,999 with consumers over age 45 planning to spend the most. Another 13% plan to spend between $750 and $999, and 18% are looking to spend only $500 to $749. With many mattresses priced much higher, this creates an opportunity for the industry to educate consumers on the health benefits of many innovative new bedding products in the marketplace.
Another key finding — stationary bases are the preferred base type among 51% of those surveyed, followed by 28% who chose an adjustable base. The rest were unsure, again showing the need for education on the options available.
As expected, thanks to the ability to see and feel the product in person, more than three-quarters of those surveyed plan to buy their mattress in-store. Some 43% of those are looking to purchase at a national furniture or mattress store chain, followed by 19% that plan to buy in a local furniture or mattress store, followed by 11% who said a big-box retailer.
The remaining 24% plan to buy online, with the largest percentage of those identifying Amazon as their preferred shopping destination.
Other key takeaways are as follows:
+ Some 94% of those surveyed said they are replacing an existing mattress, with two-thirds of those surveyed buying a mattress for a home, 22% for an apartment, 5% for a townhome, 3% for a mobile home, 2% for a condominium and 1% for a second or vacation home.
+ A majority of the consumers surveyed said they have purchased a mattress before, while millennials are new to the mattress buying process, with 9% saying they are buying one for the first time.
+ Key features and benefits that are important to those surveyed include support (62%), has a product warranty (50%), pressure relief (45%), can lie down on or test the product before buying (40%), made by a manufacturer I know and trust (36%), is in stock, can receive quickly and made in the USA (each 35%).
+ Further down the list in terms of importance are sold by a retailer I know and trust and cooling features (each 32%), has stain resistant or performance fabric (31%), can find product reviews online (24%) and made of sustainable or eco-friendly materials (18%).
The survey also looks at other key areas such as how consumers plan to pay, the expected delivery times for various mattresses and a further drill down on where they plan to buy and how much they plan to spend on various mattress types.
As always, we hope this information proves to be useful in the coming weeks and months as you update your product selection and floor displays. We also are eager to see if it aligns with what customers are buying or seeking in your respective markets. Feel free to reach out to Tom Russell at Home News Now at tom@homenewsnow.com or Alex Milstein, editor-in-chief at Bedding News Now, at alex@homenewsnow.com with thoughts or comments.
Below is a schedule of previous and upcoming Consumer Insights Now reports.
+ March 11 — CIN Overview into Planned Furniture Purchases for the First Half of 2024
+ March 18 — Sofa and Sectional Buying Plans
+ March 25 — Occasional Table Buying Plans
+ April 1 — Mattress Buying Plans
+ April 8 — Home Design and Sustainability
+ April 15 — Furniture Shopping Plans
