The Bed Wars

The end of business school has brought on a serious case of daydreaming… mostly about what the next step will bring. Mind you, I have absolutely no idea of where I'll be living or what (exactly) I'll be doing to pay off these loans… which is beginning to stress me out. However, when the going gets tough, I start nesting. Since I packed all my earthly belongings into storage and put my bed up on Craigslist, I've been wandering through home stores in Paris, poring over shelter magazines and have become something of a minor expert on bedding.

The details of my design choices are just beginning to form… but what I really would love to do in my next apartment is to recreate one of those wonderfully comfortable beds you see in most upscale hotel chains. You know… the deep mattress, pressed linens, double comforters, triple-sheeting, big fluffy pillows, etc. I admit that the hotel-bed-at-home isn't an original idea… but it wasn't so long ago that hotel chains were known for the sort of scratchy sheets and worn-out mattresses that had you longing for a night at home.

Starwood's Westin brand fired the first shot in the "Bed Wars" by creating the Heavenly Bed in 1999. Legend has it the CEO tried out hundreds of different mattresses and linens in his Connecticut home before approving what became the first branded hotel bed. Starwood rolled out bed programs throughout its brands, Marriott vowed to replace every mattress in their chain, then Hyatt and Hilton both followed suit. Radisson uses the Sleep Number bed and Kimpton outfits many rooms with extra long beds for tall guests. A good night's sleep doesn't stop at the mattresses and sheets, now hotels are throwing in sleep masks, sound machines, earplugs and specialized turndowns.

Customers aren't the only ones delighted by the battle, the bed wars are big business. Marriott spent over $190 million on their bed program from 2002-2005. Analysts estimate that in the height of the bed replacement initiatives, hotel companies were spending almost $1.5 billion annually on mattresses. The beds seem to pay their way, research by Marriott indicates that the branded bed will allow them to charge $30 more per night and Westin says customers are willing to pay $12-20 more to sleep on a Heavenly Bed.

I feel a nap coming on.