The Futon Shop — Local services in Seattle

WOW bad. Hor-en-dous mattress (Tranquility II) and customer service over email and phone. I pasted the email correspondence with Moe: Me: I purchased the Tranquility mattress in October. I've never been comfortable sleeping on it, but...I endured. Last week I realized that I've been sleeping on the metal springs. Is it possible that the mattress was not completed with the proper cushioning? I uploaded photos showing how the metal framework is right on the surface. I can grab it with my fingertips and put my fingers underneath the metal "bars." is this normal for the Tranquillity? Moe: Yes it is , the tranquility you have has bonnel coils and wool , it is normal for that to happen. The tranquility is one of our best selling spring mattresses. Me: But it’s truly horrible…I realize that people have different preferences in mattresses; however, the metal isn’t wrapped with sufficient wool and the metal “bars” (?) protrude into me when I’m sleeping. That’s normal for the tranquility? Moe: As mentioned , yes these are bonnel coils and more manufacturing reasons the springs cannot fill the entire mattress , there has to be wool batting all around . Me: HI Moe, I believe the wool part of the mattress is missing. That's why it's a problem. Moe: There is no way there is no wool in your mattress , then it would just be springs and a cotton case. Me: Good morning again, my sense about the mattress is that SOME of the wool, or the quality of its wrapping, is at fault. Have you been able to see my photos? I've attached another photo with the outline of the metal springs visible. I also took a video but need to edit it for length. I'm not happy with the quality of the mattress construction. Could someone call me about the tranquility? (No one called) Moe: Yes i see your photos , that is from extreme compression , your mattress needs to be flipped and rotated , there is wool batting and the mattress was made correctly. The are that compressed is the area that was most used which is standard , try airing the mattress out and flipping and rotating. Me: This was flipped December 1. I purchased the mattress on October 1 2023, so it had only been used (on the other side) for 2 months. I'm a petite woman and haven't compressed it in the 10 weeks I've had it. (No response so I emailed again) Me: Hello again, I've taken another photo of the outline of the metal springs showing through the fabric. I've flipped it, rotated it, done everything right. I want this to be the right mattress for me. I talked with someone at the 1-800 number today who assured me that the production process has plenty of quality checks. I started sleeping on it the first week of October and I flipped it mid November. I've rotated it too. Is it normal to be able to see the outline of the coils through the covering?

I called today and the person told me about their parking lot and where the buildings are, the various locations of the futon stores, who he gets his paycheck from, the history of the company, the weight of the wool, the machine used to wrap the springs, how far he lives from the warehouse, that Moe is his boss, that I need to flip my mattress, that the mattresses are shipped in a box and need to be unrolled, and a s**t ton of other things. What I never got from Moe or the guy on the phone is the sense that they care. At all. I could rant but the facts speak for themselves. Since I'm a month beyond their "30-day guarantee" I have no recourse, which they know. "Caveat...

I encourage you not to do business with The Futon Shop. The futon itself is lovely* but the company seems to be poorly run. Here is my story:

In the shop we were helped by a fellow who was extremely likable but under-trained for the job and misinformed us at almost every step. But we got through that, and arranged for the futon to arrive a few weeks later, the day a friend of ours was coming to stay in our extra apartment. The delivery day arrives -- no futon. So I call, and am told that because the cover we wanted was out of stock, the whole delivery had been delayed by two weeks. No email (they had my correct address), no phonecall, no communication at all. I was now on the hook to put my friend up in a hotel. Our helper said we could get a different cover and he could get the whole thing delivered the next day. I said oh, great then, let's do that -- only two nights of hotel spent. "Oh," he said a moment later, "actually we can't deliver it until Sunday." Five days later.

At this point I reached out to customer service. They were responsive and understanding and refunded the $175 shipping fee from the total bill of about $3,300. That wasn't even close to how much their mistake had cost me but.... life goes on.

The futon arrives. I'm working that evening so my partner heads up to assemble it herself. Minutes later she comes down furious, brandishing a sheet of instructions that appeared to be a copy of a copy of a copy of instructions that weren't especially clear in the first place. See attached photo. Skewed on the page, smeared, blurred images. In her other had she had an instruction sheet from Ikea, freshly printed and easy to read.

And then... the wood dowels required to assemble the frame were missing. By total dumb luck her bamboo knitting needles were exactly 9mm diameter, so I cannibalized those to make my own dowels. If that hadn't been the case we would have been on the hook for however many days it would have taken them to ship 8 tiny pieces of wood dowel. I then fought through the instructions and got the thing together.

I got back in touch with customer service and said "Look, this whole experience has been horrible, refunding the shipping really isn't making me feel taken care of." She replied she was sorry I felt that way but they felt they'd done plenty. The Amish make the instruction sheet and there's nothing they can do. Zero apology for the hotel costs they incurred, zero apology for garbage-quality instructions, halfhearted apology for missing parts. The correct cover was shipped to us and that was somehow a "big favor." But I'm now out $100 for the awful-feeling cover the guy on the phone suggested. At some point we will drive the hour round trip to the shop and attempt to return that.

Any company that provides horrible service and barely apologizes or atones is one you should go far out of your way to avoid. I've presented the facts here and you can choose for yourself, of course, but that is my recommendation.

Photos of instructions attached.

*be careful you look at the frames up close, they are not all hardwood and the composite wood they use looked prone to early chipping in the models we saw...

Dear Fellow Customers, My spouse and I had the great fortune of meeting and working with the Seattle store manager Danesh (and Edith, who was available via phone) on multiple occasions over the course of a year. We got to know them well professionally. Their product knowledge exceeded those of many competing shops, but what impressed the most was their commitment to us to find the correct combination of products for our use needs. When buying a futon sofa, for example, the construction materials, the wood finish/type, the futon mattress details (of which there are many), the futon cover materials and colors, the sofa arm selections, etc. all add up to many interrelated decisions. Danesh, who is the primary local on-site store manager, and Edith, who travels throughout Southern California managing many operations, were always tremendously helpful with all decisions and then securing the merchandise as well as helping with timing so that my spouse and I could benefit from seasonal sales. Danesh frequently kept his store open late to help with lots of furniture selection inquiries. My spouse and I, unfamiliar with futons and all the possible variations as well as all the furniture options, needed much time to pick what would fit in our small home. I could not recommend Danesh and Edith more for their patience, kindness, product knowledge, and extreme professionalism. Thank you for all your support. Because of you both, we purchase three futon sofa sets! Best Regards, John...