Makers of power foundations are adding practical, life-enhancing features while focusing on affordability, too.
When it comes to buying adjustable bases, today’s consumers seek good value and want practical features that will enhance their sleep and lives, according to makers of the products.
And manufacturers of adjustable bases are meeting consumers’ needs with well-priced models featuring split-head designs, smart remotes and other features.
After strong growth in the category in recent years, producers say the market is maturing but that there is still room for growth as they win over consumers with new designs, and as more retailers make touting power bases a routine part of the mattress sales process.
“I do not think we have seen the height of the market, but I do feel that we are not going to see the explosive growth in this category we have seen over the past several years,” says Brent Polunsky, sales manager for W. Silver Products, a maker of adjustable bases and other bed frame products based in El Paso, Texas. “There is a big difference in the attachment rate from dealer to dealer. I see the growth in helping the dealers who have not totally embraced this category and training their staff on how to sell adjustable beds. The consumers will still purchase an adjustable base if we present the right story at the right time of the selling process.”
Tailored Comfort: Exploring Diverse Options in Adjustable Beds
The range of power bases available to entice consumers is broad, from entry-level, head-only adjustables that some retailers still use as a “free with purchase” deal to high-end smart bases like Ergomotion’s Dawn House and ErgoSportive brands.
Ergomotion, an adjustable base specialist with offices in Santa Barbara, California, describes its award-winning Dawn House bed as “the ultimate hospital bed alternative.” The bed was designed to improve sleep and allow people to live independently. The base has adjustable height and other accessibility features, plus white-glove delivery and installation. With a mattress, it retails for $5,998.
Targeting a different group of consumers — those with active lifestyles — Ergomotion’s ErgoSportive is an adjustable bed with built-in health sensors and an integrated app focused on health, fitness and recovery. Paired with a hybrid mattress, it retails for $5,298.
These Ergomotion bases also demonstrate the breadth of consumers who can benefit from an adjustable base.
Finding Your Perfect Fit: Optimizing Comfort with Adjustable Beds
Entry-level adjustable bases introduce many consumers to the category. And top-of-the-line bases draw plenty of media attention and help advance the category as their novel features eventually work their way into beds with lower price points. But the majority of power base sales remain in the midrange of pricing, manufacturers note.
“High-end features will always draw the most attention, but when you really look at what consumers are bringing into their homes, you’ll see that it’s the current version of the traditional adjustable bases that have been selling best for years,” says John Zanatta, director of sales for Leggett & Platt Adjustable Beds, a division of Carthage, Missouri-based Leggett & Platt Inc.
“Head and foot articulation paired with a variety of convenience and comfort features (memory, USB charging, underbed lighting and massage) continues to be the ‘meat and potatoes’ of our segment,” Zanatta continues. “It’s fantastic that more consumers than ever have been introduced to adjustable bases through the head-only base at the entry level of the market, but those consumers quickly realize that they want additional features.”
Kyle Burns, director of marketing for Ergomotion, agrees, noting that two of the company’s most popular power bases are the Rio 3.0 and Rio 4.0, which start at about $700 retail for the base only. “Both beds offer the consumer flexibility with a zero-clearance design and adjustable height legs,” Burns says. “They both also offer wireless remotes with a host of one-touch features, such as Zero-G, one-touch flat and programmable presets. Both beds also feature underbed lighting and full head and foot articulation. The Rio 4.0 goes further by offering massage with three intensities, as well as USB ports under both sides of the bed.”
Midrange introductions were big during the winter Las Vegas Market. W. Silver debuted an adjustable base retail priced at $995 in queen size for the base only. A key selling feature is its lumbar support, Polunsky says.
In its showroom, Mlily USA spotlighted its MS200 and MS300 bases, which retail for $1,299 and $1,699, respectively. They have slimmer decks and lighter bases than previous models, which make them “great for transportation, storage and delivery,” says Derek Leishman, national sales director for the Knoxville, Tennessee-based sleep products company. The MS300 also includes underbed LEDs, USB charging ports and built-in massage with three presets.
Also at the show, Logicdata, with North American headquarters in Cedar Springs, Michigan, highlighted its Cosmo Vienna Luxe adjustable base with underbed lighting, massage and built-in USB ports on both sides of the bed. It sits at the top of the company’s line, but, at $1,199, its price point is in the midrange of the overall market.
Keeping Pace: Exploring Current Trends in Adjustable Beds
Focusing on quality and life-enhancing features can satisfy consumers. And when it comes to specific features, producers point to some key trends:
Versatile Integration: Enhancing Bedroom Dynamics with Adjustable Beds
Zanatta says many of today’s consumers prefer bases that work with their existing furniture or that complement the new bedroom furniture they are purchasing at the same time as their new mattress and base set. “Consumers spend a lot of money on their furniture, and they don’t want to make the decision to exclude an adjustable base because it won’t work with their underbed storage,” he says. Those desires make slim, lighter bases that can “rest on platforms, slats or the traditional legs” popular, Zanatta adds.
Efficient Space Solutions: Maximizing Bedroom Organization with Adjustable Beds
At the recent Las Vegas Market, Ergomotion debuted Stow, an adjustable base designed for smaller homes and bedrooms that opens from the foot to access 19 cubic feet of lighted storage. “The Stow is easy to operate and offers ample space to store extra bedding, clothing, decor and other items,” Burns says. It retails for $1,799 in a queen size.
Innovative Adjustability: Exploring New Perspectives with Adjustable Beds
In Las Vegas, St. Peters, Missouri-based Symphony Sleep debuted an Elevation kit that inclines the entire base as much as 12 degrees. “We developed this kit based on the technology of the third motor, which allows the base to elevate the head above your feet while maintaining your spine angle,” says CEO John Schulte. “Maintaining your spine angle allows the base to be used for any sleeping position so all users can enjoy the health benefits of that inclined sleeping position.” Also focused on inclines, Cleveland-based sleep products maker Rize Home introduced a Rizer accessory that’s designed to fit onto an adjustable base to incline the bed as much as 12 degrees.
Balanced Customization: Finding Harmony with Split Adjustable Beds
“One of the biggest trends we’ve seen in the past six months is the return of the split-top head on an adjustable base,” Zanatta says. “This is a feature L&P first introduced to the adjustable base back in 2000. … The split-top base provides individualized adjustment for the head of the base with a joint foot section. This gives the consumer a more cost-friendly base over a traditional split king/queen setup, all the while retaining the individualized comfort granted with a traditional split base.”
In Las Vegas, Ergomotion debuted the Duetto, a split-head base that allows each sleeper to independently control the angle of the head portion of the bed. “No more compromising,” Burns says. “Each remote controls both sides, so you can easily adjust both sides from either remote.” Other features include the company’s Zero-G and anti-snore settings, as well as underbed lighting. The Duetto base retails for $1,099.
Intelligent Functionality: Embracing Smart Features in Adjustable Beds
Base manufacturers continue to add features that connect adjustables to other electronics in the home and upgrade remotes for easier use. “Our LP Comfort Connect technology turns one of our bases into a smart home-compatible device,” Zanatta says. “We wanted to go beyond a voice-controlled remote as it seems to be the norm. While our base can be controlled via voice, it is also fully compatible with Amazon’s Alexa ecosystem. It can be utilized in a routine like any other smart device. A consumer can create a routine based on a command or a specific time, but our base can also accept trigger commands from other devices, such as a door/window lock or other safety device that does not require a voice or time prompt.”
Harnessing the Power of In-Store Experiences: Driving Sales for Adjustable Beds
While advancements in packaging, no-hassle return policies and extensive advertising created a massive market for online mattress sales, some makers of adjustable bases say it’s still a category that has the strongest sales in brick-and-mortar stores.
“Understanding the value of an adjustable base is still very reliant upon experiencing it in person,” Zanatta says. “This can be seen in the difference between online and in-person attachment rates. We sometimes forget that the adjustable base can cost as much or more than the mattress the consumer has chosen. Introducing the adjustable base at the start of the conversation will continue to provide successful attachments to the mattress.”
Well-educated retail sales associates are key to helping shoppers understand the true benefits of the products, Polunsky says.
“The consumer wants an adjustable bed,” he says. “We must have the right features, at the right price — and present it during the selling process. All consumers have either a health-based challenge or a recreational activity that an adjustable bed will solve. I believe the RSA just has to overcome one of these issues and present the right base, and most consumers will purchase the base.”
Sleep Savvy editors Kathryn Greene and Waynette Goodson contributed to this article.
Read more on what goes under the bed, Quick: Look Under the Bed.
