By JAMES BELL
Hays Post
Wichita-based The Mattress Hub has opened its newest location this week at Tebo Village, 4300 Vine, Hays, with a grand opening scheduled for Saturday.
"We want to be good partners with the community and bring something unique to Hays," owner and CEO Ryan Baty said.
While the new location will functionally sell mattresses, he said the business is more than just a store — it's a one-stop-shop for better sleep and better health.
"Upwards of 95 percent of Americans sleep on a mattress and the average household has three," he said, noting most are unhappy with their current mattress.
"The big thing that got me into this industry and keeps me in this industry," Baty said. "The vast majority of Americans are unhappy on what they currently sleep on."
Those complaints go beyond just how a mattress feels, he said.
"We are a chronically sleep-deprived country," Baty said. "It impacts our productivity, energy and health. So our whole mantra and why we have had success; our brand strategy really is that if you sleep well, you are going to live well."
He said their goal is not to sell products but rather sell options for better sleep.
"That's where we have carved out our success," Baty said. "Everything we do in our stores and across our brands is designed to help enhance the way people sleep, not just their comfort level.
"When you walk into Mattress Hub stores, it really is about how do we identify and solve your sleep problems, how do we give you something and pull features out of these beds that are going to solve your specific sleep problems?," he said.
Baty said they work with customers to find solutions at any price point.
"We have a core conviction that we want to have the best bed at every price point," he said. "So starting at $150 all the way up to our Tempur-Pedic line, we work hard to make sure we have the best-quality product."
Baty said they carry 15 options below $500 along with luxury brands.
"We want to be that one-stop-shop," he said.
In the location, they keep a stock of many mattresses, giving cash and carry options, but they also offer statewide delivery and a one-year "comfort guarantee."
A Kansas business
The Hays location will be the 13th in the chain, and while recent recognition has pushed the company onto the national stage, Baty said the company is tied to Kansas.
The desire to create a Kanas-based business extends beyond sales, the company also manufactures its own line of mattresses in Haven.
"Made right here in Kansas, by Kansans," Baty said. "That means a lot to us."
That statewide focus has moved the company to become the largest mattress retailer in the state.
"My heart's desire is to make this a Kansas-based company with Kansas-based distribution," Baty said.
The Hays location fits that plan perfectly, with easy access to two major highways, creating a perfect distribution point for western Kansas.
"That's really why Hays makes the most sense for us," he said.
Baty said customers from western Kansas have purchased from other locations using the statewide free delivery policy.
With the increased coverage that will be provided by the Hays location, he said he believes the new location will be a top performer in the chain.
"We have known for years there was a real opportunity up here," Baty said, after noting the number of clients from the area that would visit the Salina location.
"It's bringing in the capacity to better serve our customers in northwest Kansas," he said.
Even before the opening, he said nearly weekly deliveries were being made to the area.
"So we knew there was demand here," Baty said.
But while the market potential is there, he said he believes the business will complement existing businesses by focusing on working with customers to find the mattress that creates the best opportunity for quality sleep.
"There are fine retailers here that sell mattresses," Baty said. "I think what we bring to the table is a level of commitment to your sleep health that is unique in mattress retailing."
Backing up their products is a staff trained specifically to understand and help find sleep solutions.
"When you walk into a mattress specialty retailer, this is all we do," Baty said. "All we do is focus on sleep. ..That's the level of expertise we want to bring to the market in Hays. It's a wonderful market with wonderful people."
The online game
Like most other retail sectors, Baty said the mattress industry recently has seen a massive disruption as people have begun shopping for mattresses online.
Rather than eschew that trend, Baty said they work to serve customers wherever they are.
"We feel like a balanced approach of both the in-person, storefront and the online is what is best for our customers," he said. "It's still a personal shopping (experience.) You can't feel a mattress by shopping online. This is such a personal, such a unique purchase, that we still think that the brick-and-mortar retail is here to stay in our industry and is a valuable part to the consumers' journey."
Further, he said the online shift has exposed many of the bad practices in the retail industry.
"What it has done is cause brick-and-mortar retail to adapt," Baty said. "Adapt our approach to the market, adapt our merchandising, adapt our advertising. Candidly, I think it has made my company better."
He said that the pressure caused by online sales has pushed the company to have a service-based approach.
"You have to be valuable to the consumer," Baty said. "That's one of our values. We want to win with service."
That service creates a situation that allows for an unbiased view of what will help the shopper find their best sleep.
"If I have any negativity to the online brands, it's they are only presenting, one, two or three options for the customer and everybody is different," Baty said. "Everybody's sleep needs are different. Everybody's body needs are different. That's why we have 65 beds on our floor."
Technology changes the world — including sleep
While embracing technology in the sales space, Baty says technology within the mattress themselves have also had a significant impact.
"Technology has changed all industries," Baty said. "The mattress industry is no different."
While changes to the mattress industry created by new technologies may not be as noticeable as in other consumer categories, he said the changes have created a better experience for the shopper.
"Technology has helped us better service the needs of our customers," Baty said.
He said around 80 percent of Americans deal with pressure points while sleeping.
New technologies can alleviate that issue and many others, Baty said.
"Bad backs, issues with joint pain, things like that. We now have the technology that has allowed us to build mattresses that will (create) better spinal alignment," he said.
New materials can keep mattresses cool, as well.
"Our industry has benefitted from technology advancements," Baty said.
Highlighting the adoption of new technologies, a growing brand that offers a new type of mattress that utilizes gel grids for construction, Purple, will soon be available at their locations as well.
"We will be the only place in northwest Kansas to shop Purple," Baty said. "It's about bringing variety to our consumers, so they trust our approach."
For more information about Mattress Hub, visit mattresshub.com.
The company also maintains a presence on social media, including Facebook.
