LAS VEGAS MARKET: Five Star's Better Homes bedding line gaining momentum

Licensed line gains from magazine's relationship with readers

David Perry -- Furniture Today, September 17, 2009

Five Star President Donna Zett stands near a display of Better Homes and Gardens mattresses.

LAS VEGAS — The Better Homes and Garden mattress line produced by Five Star Mattress is benefiting from the trust that the lifestyle magazine has engendered with its readers, Five Star officials said.

 

The line, retailing from $799 to $1,499, resonates with the broad group of consumers who look to the magazine for guidance on a variety of home-related issues, said Donna Zett, president of Five Star.

"Consumers instantly associate the brand with trust," she said. "Better Homes and Gardens is Americana. Everyone can associate with the brand."

Zett provided an update on the line, which made its debut last year and is on display here this week in the Five Star showroom, World Market Center A-735.

"Many of the consumers who are buying the line are among the 40 million monthly readers of Better Homes and Gardens," she said. "This consumer feels informed by the editors of the magazine on matters that are important to her, like her home and all the things inside it. She feels that Better Homes and Gardens is the brand that bridges the gap between dreaming and doing."

Female consumers make most of the bedding purchase decisions, according to Zett, and the Better Homes and Gardens line is well positioned to attract those consumers. "Better Homes and Gardens is the name women trust," she said.

The brand is a strong one: 97% of consumers know the name and 75% associate it with trust and quality, officials said.

"The dealers who are carrying the line have found the brand name stronger than expected," Zett said. "They have seen consumers respond to it. We have other retailers who can't wait to add the line but have inventory they are getting through."

The pillow bolsters and foot protectors with the line feature fashion-forward looks. The foot protectors resemble comforters that have been folded at the end of the bed, Zett said. That design gives the beds a stylish look right at home in furniture stores, she said.

The line offers a number of features that combine comfort, quality, value and style, according to Zett. One key to the line is the use of Cool Temp technology, incorporated into the ticking. That technology absorbs and releases heat as needed so that consumers don't sleep too hot or too cold. That balanced temperature helps consumers sleep at their perfect temperature, which means less disturbance during the night, Zett said.

The beds in the line are cushioned with PillowLoft fiber, which offers superior pressure point relief; CoolForm memory foam, an open-cell structure that is much more breathable than conventional memory foam; and Talalay latex, the most advanced and breathable foam on the market today, according to Five Star officials.

Four-inch wide foam rails and heavy-gauge border rods provide double edge support on the innerspring models, the company said. Those beds feature the producer's Coil Wrap innerspring system of individually wrapped coils with foam encasement, designed to reduce motion transfer and provide individualized support.

The steel foundation that supports the mattresses has a double beam construction that works to isolate the impact of movement during sleep, Five Star officials said.