Sleep Well & Green with Bruno Mattresses

To sleep well is crucial for health and well-being and to help you do that is a big priority for UrbanMeisters. We’ve covered modern day insomnia from fresh perspectives- that of how pollution impacts sleep and how to combat it and have hopefully achieved it without ‘putting you to sleep’! Well, metaphorically & hopefully not literally 🙂 Today we focus on the choice of mattresses with a special feature on an innovative green mattress brand Bruno from Germany.
 

Need a good mattress to sleep well

In an ideal scenario we rest up to 7 to 8 hours daily on the mattress. So it is particularly important that our bedding has no negative effects on our sleep. The National Sleep Foundation did a ‘Bedroom Poll’ to ask how fundamental elements of the bedroom contribute to sleep. About 9/10 rated a comfortable mattress as key to a good night’s sleep. See full findings here. But do we really need a poll to tell us how crucial a comfortable mattress is in helping us relax and drift off to sleep? It’s scientifically researched but we know by experience too that a bad mattress can be harmful for back pain in the long run. We’ve also told you how sleep deprivation can lead to very serious health issues in our previous feature like weak immunity, slower metabolism, bad mood swings, cardio-vascular diseases & even diabetes. You can read research studies here: 1, 2, 3, 4.
This is why UrbanMeisters went on a hunt to find that awesome mattress that would fit perfectly in your bed and your green lifestyle! After digging for weeks we came across Bruno-THE most promising start-up among mattresses brands. They’ve been making waves in the home decor and lifestyle products space with their innovative and green patented mattress technology that’s putting happy customers to sleep 🙂 And we’re very kicked they agreed to do a collaborative feature with us on how to choose the right mattress for yourself and why Bruno fits the bill perfectly!
 

Bruno: Sleep’s GREEN Best Friend

So it’s not rocket science to figure out a good mattress is sleep’s best friend. Think of the plush, soft mattresses in hotels that you  just sink into and snooze! But those are not the ideal sleep partners. You need to be like Goldilocks and find just the right one- neither too hard, nor too soft. And we’ve hit jackpot for you. Presenting Bruno– a green mattress sensation that’s been giving a delightful sleep to it’s patrons. Bruno is a German company with the mission of making the best mattress this world has seen. And from user reviews it seems they’ve been making good on their promise. The dynamic duo Felix Baer and Andreas Bauer are the masterminds behind Bruno.
Team UrbanMeisters was totally hooked at eco-friendly! When we heard about Bruno and their commitment to sustainable and responsible sourcing of raw material to make mattresses, it excited us no end. We love this new age brand that like us believes that a green lifestyle is fun & uncomplicated and eco-friendly products can be of superior quality & durable! Let’s dig deeper and get in conversation with one of the Founding Partners, Felix Baer & Bruno’s Country Manager France, Marielle  Schmitt, on what exactly should we look at while going mattress shopping and what makes Bruno different.
 

1. What should be our checklist while going mattress shopping?

As we explained in our previous features on sleep (Refresh memory here: 1 & 2), a lot of elements are responsible for lack of sleep among urbans- pollution, lifestyle, stress, food and what not. But choice of mattress is also very important because it’s really simple- if you don’t have a good mattress then you’re not comfortable and you may even be harming your back. So it’s time to pay attention to buying that mattress. Marielle recommends the following checklist to be kept in mind while shopping:

• What are the materials used? The composition details should be clear and complete.
• Where do the materials come from? This is important not only from the point of view of being responsible about environment but a practical purpose of deterring quality as well.
• Is there any relevant or reliable certification?
• What is the density of the mattress? This is crucial to provide support to your body and ultimately the comfort level depends on this.
• Is the mattress guaranteed? For how many years?
• Can the mattress be tested? Free test home which is the only and best way to know if the mattress suits you or not!

The market is flooded with many commercial mattresses from types of coils, springs, fibres, foam etc. What does one go for? The popular sleep products review site www.thesleepjudge.com shares a very comprehensive guide to mattress type with comparisons of materials and techniques to help us make an informed purchase decision decision. This platform is an informative one stop shop for all your sleep product needs with company tested reviews and a very transparent and rigorous process of gauging sleep related brands and products.

2. So what makes Bruno so special?

This innovative product has come about after much research and testing. But it actually started from personal experience. Both Felix & Andreas were fed up with sleep deprivation during their time at a tech start-up some time ago and one of the reasons for this, they discovered, was uncomfortable mattresses. Taking matters into their own hands they decided to develop a mattress that they would love to sleep on and one which would fit their green lifestyle principles. Et Voilà! Enter Bruno! What makes this mattress special is the innovative technology- One Degree of firmness- that provides exceptional comfort. Marielle informs us that this is a unique concept that guarantees that the mattress is neither too soft, nor too hard, but just right. According to WebMD « the mattress needs to support your body in a neutral position, one in which your spine has a nice curvature and your buttocks, heels, shoulders, and head are supported in proper alignment (Source). » With this unique weight distribution technology specially developed by Bruno experts, these mattresses adapt to our body and our sleeping position perfectly as long as we weigh between 50kg & 110kg. So doesn’t matter how you sleep, the mattress will give your back and spine the best support thus giving us a restful and optimum sleep.
The mattress also has a 7-zone special comfort foam that ensures high resilience for ideal support and long-lasting quality. Felix elaborates, « This layer has been produced by our experts to fully adapt to each body and sleeping position. It is very high quality PU foam that is not comparable to cheaper foams you mainly find in the market. The density of the high resilience foam is 48kg/m3, which offers a good support with a nice firmness and long lasting durability for the mattress. »
He further tells us that Bruno uses 100% Natural Latex in mattresses which is particularly flexible and elastic and adapts to each morphology while offering an exceptional quality of sleep. A 3 cm layer offers a good aeration, adapts to each body and offers flexibility and elasticity. Moreover, natural latex has anti-bacterial properties too! « We use 100% natural latex, which is really not common. » It’s important to note here that most brands offer latex mattresses which are usually composed of synthetic latex. Or when brands claim it’s natural latex it’s mostly not more that 85% of natural latex used in the layer (they get away with claiming natural latex because legislation loopholes allow terminology if 85% material is used). Bruno does not cheat. It uses 100% Natural Latex.

 

3. Why is Bruno a GREEN mattress brand?

Bruno is an ideal green mattress option for Urbanmeisters because they use only the best quality materials which are sourced with the strictest control on sourcing. 100% cotton and 100% natural latex materials of their products are in compliance with the highest ecological standards and without the use of chemicals. Also, natural latex comes from the sap of rubber trees and has antibacterial properties. Felix tells us that their latex comes from the Hevea rubber tree which is mainly grown in Asia as the climate is perfect for these plantations. « While the raw material comes from Asia, it is processed in Belgium. We are very particular about maintaining sustainable sourcing and have earned credible certifications to prove that the path from the rubber tree to our mattress is sustainable and respects all the necessary standards. » Some reliable & noteworthy certifications that Bruno has are:

• EuroLATEX ECO-Standard- this certification has been developed by the European association of latex foam producers with the most deemed and reputed European scientific institutions like TFI Germany. This label defines the acceptable limits of dangerous substances for our health that could be found in the composition of the latex foam seed. (Source)

• GOLS – Global Organic Latex Standard – GOLS has been introduced to ensure a clear path and procedure on the route from field level/farmer level to certified organic latex product manufacturer. (Source)

• OKO TEXT STANDARD 100 – it is an international certification institution including researching and controlling activities. The label is backed by independent testing institutions that test the product to ensure the respect of our health and skin in the long term. The Standard 100 is the strictest and most rigorous control as it is also suitable for babies. (Source)

• LGA – it is a quality certification that attests that the product has been tested and monitored for safety and quality. (Source)

And the green story does not end there! They do much more to reduce their carbon foot print of the shipments. Felix tell us,  « We produce our mattress 100% in Germany which is local, we don´t produce in China for example. So we reduce the footprint for sure. Also we don´t have any shop and we ship directly from our warehouse to our customers, which already saves a lot of energy. By supporting a local production and by controlling all our value chain we really try to limit the carbon footprint. »
He goes on to tell us, « We are also promoting sustainability by producing a high quality mattress that has a life /durability of at least 10 years, which is guaranteed. By producing high quality and durable products, we are also involved and engaged against low cost and almost disposable mattresses and products. We don´t want to produce cheap mattresses that people have to change every 5 year or less. By the way, we almost all come to work with our bikes or by foot and we have SODASAN soap in the office!! At a small scale it also makes the difference! So we are a sustainable start-up! » Just like us 🙂
Apart from being ethically sourced, the fact that it is made out of eco-friendly and natural materials also influences the quality of sleep and overall health. Marielle elaborates, « As everywhere and it is the same with all the products, we know that when it is natural it is far better for our health and at least there is no risk. We avoid some allergies and reactions and even diseases by favouring natural products. Sleeping 8 hours a night on a natural latex layer can only be better than sleeping on a synthetic and chemical mattress, no? There is actually no doubt. Moreover our 100% natural cotton cover with the latex layer is suitable for everyone including babies that are quite fragile and more likely to develop allergies. People who are health conscious in their daily lives will opt for the most natural options even if there has not been a study. It is just common sense as it is to eat organic apples! »
So as they say, Bruno is an ecological mattress for responsible dreams!
 

4. Eco-friendly, Superior Quality & Affordable can be in the same sentence!

People often don’t even want to try eco-friendly & sustainable brands thinking the « eco » label will naturally translate into more expensive products. But that is not necessarily true! And it’s our mission at UrbanMeisters to show consumers that a green lifestyle can very well fit in your pocket. So we asked the all important question of the price because the mattress is loaded with innovative technology and superior quality materials. Bruno surprisingly offers great value for money. And this is possible because they control their value chain. Marielle explains, « We offer  high quality for a competitive price. For example, a 140×190 mattress costs 675€ and a 160×200 775€, the average price for  comparable quality on the market is 1200€- so much more expensive than both our bestseller sizes in France. Basically, we are 40% less expensive as we produce our mattress sustainably in Germany! So we also support local manufacturers and trustful partners. »

 

5. Expert testing + your 30 day testing period!

Each Bruno mattress requires hours of manual labour and even more stringent is the testing of the final product by the team of Bruno sleep experts and which is why they confidently give a 10 YEAR GUARANTEE. But the final test is how we sleep on it and Bruno gives us a never heard of 30 NIGHTS TRIAL PERIOD. If we don’t feel satisfied then they’ll replace it for us free! Definitely worth trying don’t you think? After all just 5 minutes of hopping on a mattress at the show room is not sufficient to gauge it fully.

Exceptional Comfort. German Know-How. Green. Sleep cannot have a better best friend than Bruno!
Do write to us if you’ve used this product. We’d love to hear some real-time feedback on contact@urbanmeisters.com
You can also read our previous features on sleep deprivation & impact of pollution on sleep here & here respectively.
 
Source for all images: http://www.brunomatelas.fr