Kurt Ling is excited.
The cofounder of Posh+Lavish, the high-end mattress line now in its 10th year, has some great new beds that he’s getting ready for the launch pad.
“We are working on a super-cool collection now that is all about hand tufting and another collection with horse hair, and both feature some natural rubber as well,” Ling told me the other day. “These are super-sexy products. They may be the prettiest beds that I’ve ever built.”
For a guy who’s been designing beds for almost three decades, that’s quite a statement.
Ling and his partner, Steve Baumberger, have found success in the mattress marketplace with a tight focus on the high end with a handful of primary mattress materials, including natural rubber, wool and cotton. And they have been winning with a counter-intuitive strategy in which they avoid the “l” word — latex — that is featured in many of their beds.
“Latex” is commonly used in the trade, but Ling says that the term is not always understood and appreciated as a mattress material by consumers, who may be thinking more about latex allergies or latex gloves than they are about mattresses.
A better term, he says, is “natural rubber,” which avoids some possible consumer confusion. Natural rubber “is an uncommon component in premium mattresses and is more elastic, resilient and longer lasting than traditional polyurethane foam used in other luxury brands,” Ling says.
But it’s best to go beyond talk about materials and to talk about the feel of the beds, which he describes as nestling consumers on a buoyant surface where they feel like they are floating. “Some of that feel is like the feeling of sleeping on a waterbed,” he says.
Ling says that one of the secret sauces at Posh+Lavish is the one-two comfort punch that its mattresses pack when they are paired with toppers.
“If you want magic in the feel,” he observes, “you will add a topper to your mattress.” That topper adds buoyancy, and that unique feel has become a trademark of the Posh+Lavish brand.
These days the company is selling about the same number of toppers as mattresses, and it has made toppers an integral part of its luxury and comfort story.
Key price points for Posh+Lavish are in the $5,000 range, and the line tops out at $8,000. Those prices give retailers margins that Ling says range from “the high 60s to the mid-70s” — margins that are vital when retail foot traffic remains light and the retail environment remains challenging.
“Retail is a lot better at the high end of the market than at the low end of the market,” Ling says. “But overall, retail is not great.”
Posh+Lavish shows its products at the Las Vegas Market, where its new models will be shown at the January show, but the company also uses an “old school” tool to reach retailers: a road show.
The company’s 12 independent sales representatives approach the market one retailer at a time, inviting retailers to exclusive road shows that offer a more informal environment than sometimes found at home furnishings markets. There is plenty of time for the reps to talk about the mattresses and to let all of the members of the retailer’s team experience the beds for themselves.
The close rates for those shows are usually better than 50% and are sometimes as high as 70%, Ling says.
He says Posh+Lavish is growing through dealer recommendations. Retailers who are thriving with the brand are great brand ambassadors. Their success encourages more retail success.
On foundations like those, Posh+Lavish is planning for a year of growth in 2026.
