Would you pay $64,950 for a bed?

The extravagant Vividus bed has been turning heads -- and giving others a serious case of sticker shock.
Photo Courtesy of Hästens

While a lot of people's jaws would drop if asked whether they would pay $64,950 for a bed, there are others out there who would answer affirmatively -- even outside the typical luxury-purchase crowd. The luxury mattress industry has capitalized on the recent healthy-living trend and put to rest the idea that a good night's sleep isn't critical to well-being. Couple that with a few other factors -- like the deafening groans of affluent, aching agesters -- and you open up a market for top-of-the-line mattresses that cost more than most cars.

The particular bed causing all this commotion is the Vividus bed, made by a Swedish-based company called Hästens. The company's ads daringly ask people how much they're willing to spend to enjoy years and years of blissful shuteye. If $64,950 is a little pricey, someone can scale back and try out one of their less expensive models like the popular 2000T, which will only set you back about a third of the amount.

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The craftsmanship that goes into each Vividus mattress and frame has been honed to perfection over the past century and a half.
Photo Courtesy of Hästens

­Each customized Hästens' Vividus mattress is created by hand and takes between 140 and 160 man-hours to complete. The frame alone takes a week to create, and is made from slowly growing arctic pine and oiled oak. Hand-selected horsehairs are another of the all-natural ingredients in each Vividus, and they play an important role. The hollow horsehairs in the mattress help keep air flowing and moisture levels to a minimum. The beds also contain cotton,­ wool, flax, down and 10-turn steel springs. Hästens, which was founded in 1852, says its experience and high-quality artisanship, including the patented bedspring system, contribute to the beds' impressive signature feel.

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More Really Expensive Mattresses

The Magniflex Platinum mattress sets cost up to $90,000 for the mattress and foundation.
Photo Courtesy of Magniflex

For people looking to shell out more than a couple of grand on a bed, different companies offer a range of models along a sliding scale of prices. Magniflex of Italy is one available luxury brand; Hollandia of Israel is another.

Magniflex's priciest mattress sets are part of their Platinum Collection, and they not only surpass the price of their Gold Collection mattress sets (which feature 22-karat gold thread woven into the cover), they also top the Vividus in price. If you want to snuggle up on a Magniflex Platinum queen-size mattress, you'll be spending a whopping $75,000 [source: Sarreal]. Looking for something a little larger? For the king-size platinum, you'll need to shell out a record-breaking $90,000. These custom-designed, eco-friendly, weight-sensing memory foam mattresses are said to have design features which regulate temperature and beat away bugs, critters, odors and even stress. Want a matching ergonomic Platinum pillow? That'll be another two grand.

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The ELITE SAFE-T bed by Hollandia International not only delivers a great night's sleep, it can also spare you from ever getting popcorn butter and candy wrappers stuck on the bottom of your shoes at the movies again.
Photo Courtesy of Hollandia International

Althought Hollandia's wares are a little bit cheaper than those of its competitors, it's not exactly slouching off either. For $35,000 you can purchase their Elite king-size bed, part of their Platinum-Luxe Advanced Sleep Systems Series [source: Ponto]. Don't think you're getting just a really fancy mattress in this deal though. You'll also be taking home a retractable HDTV flat screen TV and a surround sound home theatre system -- complete with a DVD/CD changer and an iPod docking station. And for a small additional fee -- if you had any money left over after buying this extravagant entertainment-enabled bed -- you can stash that spare cash right inside a safe installed beneath the mattress.

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Sources

  • Bounds, Wendy. "The Psychology of Selling a $64,950 Bed." The Wall Street Journal's Independent Street. 6/23/2008. (7/21/2008) http://blogs.wsj.com/independentstreet/2008/06/23/the-psychology-of-selling-a-64950-bed/
  • Green, Penelope. "The Money's in the Mattress." New York Times. 7/12/2007. (7/22/2008) http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/12/garden/12mattresses.html?_r=1&oref=login
  • Hastens Web site. (7/22/2008) http://www.hastens.com/en/
  • "Hastens Vividus." Hastens. (7/21/2008) http://www.hastens.com/en-us/THE-COLLECTION/Continental-beds/Vividus/
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  • Jordan, Carla. "A guide to luxury mattresses." Dallas Morning News. 8/17/2007. (7/22/2008)http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/fea/home/stories/DN-nhg_luxurymattresses_0817liv.ART.State.Edition1.42b9d69.html
  • Luxury Sleep Manufacturer Hollandia to Bring New Age Designs to 2008 Las Vegas Market For First Time." Bedding and Specialty Bedroom. 6.24.2008. (7/22/2008) http://209.85.215.104/search?q=cache:Nn-anAA9KZAJ:www.hollandiainternational.com/ publicity/2008/Bedroom06242008.pdf+hollandia+mattresses+beds+prices+2008 &hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=4&gl=us&client=firefox-a
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  • Ponto, Michelle. Personal Correspondence concerning Hollandia International Products. 7/24/2008. (7/24/2008)
  • Sarreal, Catherine. "Magniflex "Platinum Collection" Unveiled at Las Vegas Furniture Market." Magniflex. (7/24/2008)
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