Beating the Chains Means Ramping Up Service Drastically

Their mattress business started out at the Valley Indoor Swap Meet in 1984 with a single 10-by-10 booth. Since then, Beds Unlimited has expanded to three locations in Canoga Park, Northridge and Woodland Hills, with a new location to open at the end of this year. Being a small independent chain in the very competitive mattress and bed industry is challenging but co-owner Lucie Volotzky has shown that such a business can operate successfully if an owner works hard on many different levels. Volotzky started her business with her husband Chemi (who was a recent immigrant from Israel). He had worked as a mattress deliveryman for a bed store in the Valley during the early 80s. The store eventually went out of business, and the owner owed her husband $5,000 in back pay. Because the owner was tight on money, he gave Chemi a bed frame as a temporary form of compensation. Then, hoping to capitalize on an opportunity and start their own business, the Volotzkys decided to open their own mattress store. “We purchased a booth at the Valley Indoor Swap Meet, and used it to sell mattresses during the weekends,” said Volotzky. She said that times were tough financially at first, and her husband often worked both sales and delivery. Sometimes, to help earn a little extra income, he would even sell hats and sunglasses from his car. After some time though, they started gathering a loyal following. “Eventually, we got so popular that people started coming to our house during the week, looking to buy mattresses,” she said. The Volotzkys expanded, and opened their own mattress store on Sherman Way in 1988. Right approach Volotzky said that much of her company’s success was due to her and her husband’s personable approach with customers. “Let’s say you have your heart set on a particular brand of mattress, but we don’t have it in stock,” said Volotzky. “What we’ll do is order that mattress for you, and for the time being, we’ll give you a loaner mattress free of charge. We never try and sell a customer something they don’t need.” Customer Patty Parlato, who purchased a mattress from Beds Unlimited, said their customer service is exceptional. “Honestly, I was looking for a mattress that was less expensive than one in a chain store,” said Parlato. “The prices were decent at Beds Unlimited, and the service was unbelievable and very helpful. I will never buy from a chain store again. I have bought from chain stores like Leeds, and you are left to walk about, with little help. They help you find what you need at Unlimited… they now have a customer for life.” “I can honestly count on my two hands how many complaints and problems we had over the past 26 years,” said Volotzky. Relaxed atmosphere She also said that because her stores are family-owned and operated, they have an amiable and relaxed atmosphere. Volotzky said that her whole family, including her children, help operate her stores. It hasn’t been all easy. “We did have some difficulties in the early 90’s,” said Volotzky. “The economy was poor, and our store on Sherman Way was badly damaged in the Northridge Earthquake. We were able to make it through OK, but when we saw the economy turning for the worse around 2005, I knew we needed to try a different business strategy to keep our business afloat.” Joining up In order to develop further business growth, Volotzky worked to make new business connections by joining a number of the San Fernando Valley’s local chambers of commerce. The United Chambers of Commerce named Beds Unlimited “Medium Business of the Year.” She also currently has a seat on the board of the Chatsworth Neighborhood Council, serving as Transportation and Safety Co-Chair. Volotzky said that her involvement with the chambers and council led to an increase in business referrals, which due to the size of her store, proved to be absolutely crucial for business growth. In addition, Volotzky said that despite growing business connections throughout various communities in the San Fernando Valley, her company does have trouble attracting the attention of major mattress suppliers. Due to her size ($1.4 million in annual revenues), she is unable to match the high volume of sales of a larger chain retailer, and that deters some suppliers. But Volotzky feels that her store has built business and shouldn’t be counted out.