Natalie Nemes, of family run Simply Beds in North Yorkshire, on what to consider when buying your mattress and more
Can you give us a brief overview of the history of Simply Beds?
We’re a family run bed retail business, headed up by four siblings with three stores in North Yorkshire (Ripon, Northallerton and Catterick Garrison), and for over 20 years we have built up a wealth of sleep expertise. We are home to a range of beds, mattresses, bedroom furniture, bed frames and bedding for you to try in store, all carefully selected for you with your comfort being at front of mind.
Why has North Yorkshire been a great base for your showrooms?
North Yorkshire, along with all of Yorkshire, is simply beautiful. We’re going to be biased as this is our hometown, but our customers really are just great. We honestly feel so lucky to get to meet lots of genuinely nice people.
With three stores our father called it “the golden triangle”. The right number of stores to provide good customer service to all the lovely people of North Yorkshire and its boundaries. We are big enough to specialise, small enough to care.
Additionally, as we’re situated in the heart of where many of our bed manufacturers are based, we have fantastic working relationships with our suppliers, resulting in quicker lead-times and competitive prices.
What kind of experience are you looking to offer there?
We’re very much a knowledge-led sales team. We prefer to communicate by offering helpful advice and provide an understanding of the technical aspects of each mattress to help you reach a decision, without the pressure tactics like some of the larger retailers can adopt.
Priding ourselves on service, Simply Beds truly cares about our customers and seeks to accommodate where we can, whether it’s an early morning delivery, special size bed, or using a customer’s personal fabric to make a headboard. Our friendly expert delivery team can take away the stress, time and effort of building a new bed and assemble it for you. Let’s face it, life is too short.
We can remove and recycle your old bed too. Finding a way to dispose of a mattress is no mean feat, especially if you want to get rid of it in a responsible way. Far too many mattresses end up in landfill sites.
Has our approach to beds and sleeping changed over recent years?
Yes, it has, years ago your chiropractor might have suggested that an orthopaedic ‘firmer’ mattress is better for your back. But this doesn’t suit everyone. A firm mattress doesn’t always equate to a supportive one – depending on whether you sleep on your back, side or front, a firm mattress could evenly distribute your weight or put too much pressure on your hips, shoulder, and neck, causing discomfort and pain.
We have some great mattresses that are super comfy and extremely supportive. We offer mattresses that are ‘zoned’. This means that the mattress is split into different sections of firmness. Across the middle the springs are firmer, supporting your lumbar area, and at the head end and foot end, it’s slightly softer, so you don’t wake up with an achy neck and shoulders – giving you the support where you need it the most.
Memory foam can get a bad rep for being too hot. There are so many types of memory foam on the market. We offer foams that are pressure relieving and breathable with an open cell structure, with many using OEKO-TEX® fabrics. These are fabrics that are tested for harmful substances.
What top tips do you have about buying the right bed for the perfect night’s sleep?
We suggest going physically bed shopping. Opting for an online trial mattress might not be right for you, hoping that one mattress might suit everyone is highly unlikely as we all sleep in different positions, plus the many other factors to consider. Do you get hot at night? Do you share with a partner? Get back pain? Are you an allergy sufferer?
As a rule of thumb, the position you wake up in on a morning is generally the position that you sleep in most of the time. So, if you wake up on your front, we suggest a firmer mattress. If you wake up on your side, then a medium mattress and if you wake up on your back, we suggest a softer mattress.
If you’re a back sleeper, a good test is to lie down and then attempt to slide your hand under your back. It should be slightly difficult. If your hand slides under easily, then the mattress is most likely too firm. If you can’t get your hand in at all, the mattress is probably too soft.
However, these are only suggestions, only you know what feels comfortable. Once again, this is why we suggest a visit into one of our stores, where our friendly experts can help you.
What makes a good mattress?
A supportive one. Something with a good pocket spring system, that evenly distributes your body weight, reducing joint pressure, and providing you with spinal support. Choose a mattress with either natural or breathable (open cell structure) fillings, to ensure you don’t overheat in the summer and are not too cold in the winter.
What are typically your most popular products and why do you think that is?
The Hypnos Wool Origins range of mattresses are hugely popular now. The environment is a major factor in people’s mattress choice and choosing a 100% recyclable mattress is important to many of us.
One of things we’re most proud about this range is that the mattresses are upholstered with fleeces from Red Tractor Farms based in the Yorkshire Dales. That’s 100% British wool traceable to our very own Swaledale sheep.
Along with Hypnos, Harrison Spinks is also committed to protecting the environment. Offering mattresses that are ‘foam free’ ‘chemical free’ and ‘glue free’. This alongside the luxurious quality fillings is why it’s hugely popular with our customers.
Have you introduced anything new in 2023?
We always start each year with an industry trade show, we get to see lots of new innovative mattress technologies and new interior trends, which we start to see filter through quickly.
This year we have introduced Zero G mattresses. These mattresses offer a sense of weightlessness providing muscle relaxation. They are manufactured with an advanced foam called ‘Zero Gravity’ that has been developed to recreate an amazing sense of weightlessness and helps to lower your body temperature so you can reach optimal REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep, which is thought to be important for learning, memory and mood.
Bedding, especially your pillow, is just as important as your mattress. Our new favourite pillow is the Yorkshire Wool Pillow, available in soft, medium or firm. Covered in a 100% cotton outer layer and best of all filled with lots of lovely Yorkshire wool. They’re supportive, hypoallergenic, temperature regulating and recyclable and at £39.99 each very well priced.
We launch new products all the time, so it’s worth checking in with us throughout the year.
