Local Business Helping People Sleep for 76 Years

The origins of go back to 1936, in the middle of the Great Depression.

Today, in the middle of the not-so-great recession, the family business continues to operate "the region's largest world class private label manufacturing plant" with its showroom at 3161 State Road in Bensalem.

President Ron Wolf explained that his grandfather, Allen, began in the business with owner Milt Cohen in south Philly. The Wolf family merged into the management of the business in the early 1970s.

In the beginning, it was strictly a wholesale operation.

"We served stores like Sears, Gimbels and Hess," he said. "All of them are gone but we're still here."

That survival has a lot to do with the decision around 1979 to create the retail arm of the business, opening Croydon Mattress Factory in Croydon.

"We felt we had to go direct to the public," Wolf said. "It was a great idea and we're still here."

In 1997, the business was moved to its Bensalem location, where there are about 2,000 pieces in stock for pickup or delivery.

"We were looking to get out of the city. We had no room for tractor trailers," Wolf said. "We wanted to be off (Interstate) 95 and someplace where we could get to the Turnpike."

Today, about 80 percent of the business is retail, with most of the wholesale side serving South Jersey stores under CMF's trade name, Sylcon.

On State Road, CMF comprises 30,000 square feet, with 7,000 devoted to the showroom, which features a kids’ furniture area, an adjustable Omni Bed area, custom headboards and the largest selection of futons in the area. In the back is a manufacturing area for specialty items such as beds for boats, RV's, sleeper truck cabs and antique or foreign beds.

Croydon Mattress Factory has made beds as long as 9 feet for professional athletes and once even made an 18-by-20-foot bed for a 4th of July display in Long Island, NY.

The main manufacturing plant, comprising about 50,000 square feet, is in Philly. At both plants, trained craftsmen use triple tempered steel coils and the latest premium comfort materials in making more than a dozen varieties of pillow top, Euro-pillow and tight top varieties, according to the company website.

Wolf says CMF offers the longest structural guarantees in the industry, up to 25 years pro-rated.

And while the company prides itself on quality, the factory-direct prices are as low as $98 for a twin mattress.

Wolf acknowledges that the recession has hurt business, which employs about 25 people.

"The recession has affected the whole furniture industry," he said. "You don't get a lot of discretionary income. But industry people say things are getting better and we see it here a bit."

To what does Wolf attribute the company's longevity?

"It's service. It's caring about the customer; what they want, not what we're looking to sell," said Wolf. "I think it's just being nice."