Foaming At The Mouth

I’ve been selling mattresses for a Canadian chain for over fifteen years now. An older gentleman kept arguing with me that foam is hot and there’s NO WAY he wanted ANY foam in his mattress.

Customer: “Listen, kid! You ain’t BS-ing me. I used to sell mattresses at [Retail Chain] back in 1987, and foam is always hot! You’re not gonna bamboozle me into thinking foam isn’t hot. I want no foam!“

His info was way outdated.

Me: “Thanks for calling me kid; I’m forty-nine. Sir, a lot has changed in thirty years. All mattresses will have some foam as upholstery layers. Now, some are made with cooling gels and phase change materials that wick heat away from your body. A lot has changed in comfort layers since 1987.”

Customer: “Well… I’m sixty-seven and know better than you. I sold mattresses for five years; I know what I’m talking about.”

I went for the kill.

Me: “Sir, I’ve been doing this for fifteen years, I’m a trainer for the company, and here is my [Brand] certification document. Plus, I wrote part of our training manual in regards to specifications.”

Then, I went on to explain the difference between open-cell foam versus closed-cell, mentioning foam density and ILD (indentation load deflection). I showed him and insisted he touched one of our coolest mattresses, saying that it’s three to six degrees cooler than traditional beds. At that point, he got upset.

Customer: “You’re just a little snot-nosed, bratty know-it-all!”

Me: “Thank you for acknowledging my expertise and professionalism.”

Customer: “Go f*** yourself!” 

He stormed out. His wife was extremely embarrassed.

Customer’s Wife: “I’m sorry about him. He can’t admit when he’s wrong. I’ll come back tomorrow and get that coolest mattress you have that’s made all of foam. It was comfy. He can sleep in the tub for all I care.”

She bought the bed the next day! Three weeks later, the man came back to see my colleague to exchange the mattress… because it was too cold.