ALEXANDRIA, Va.-Mattress shipments will continue their current growth pattern through 2012 and 2013, according to the latest forecast for the industry from the International Sleep Products Association.
In dollars, according to ISPA’s Statistics Committee, mattress shipments this year should rise 7.2 percent, while in units the increase should come to 3.5 percent. For 2013, the value of mattress shipments is expected to increase by 6.6 percent, while unit shipments are projected for a 3.4 percent rise.
These gains would come on top of increases of 10.1 percent and 2.1 percent in dollars and units, respectively, for 2011 and 4.1 percent and 6.1 percent in units and dollars, respectively, for 2010. ISPA said among the factors that are providing strength to the mattress market are the economic recovery, which has gained some momentum beginning in the second half of last year; monthly job gains of 200,000 since last September; and a decline in the unemployment rate to 8.3 percent this past January, after totaling around 9 percent through much of 2011.
In addition, the housing market appears to be back on an upswing, although this sector is still beset by the impact of “underwater” mortgages (in which the balance on a mortgage is greater than the value of the home), ISPA said.