One of the things everyone really likes about Costco is their very generous return policy: basically, we’ll take back anything from partially eaten food to a year old DVD that you aren’t satisfied with for any reason. And while they are less generous now on electronics items, just 90 days, that’s still far better (like probably 3x as long) than most retailers. In any case, I’m sure we’ve all taken advantage of their return policy by taking back things we tried and didn’t like or didn’t actually want when we got home, and there’s nothing wrong with that. However, I don’t think you should abuse the very nice Costco policies by taking back things in a totally ridiculous and unintended way. I have a story that will probably make you go ‘what? that can’t be right!’ because I know both my husband and I did that and we were standing right there witnessing it. We were taking advantage of the nice return policy at Costco this weekend to return the SDHC cards that I had purchased that were so overpriced, as well as a DVD that we had bought and never opened quite some time ago.
I felt bad about returning the DVD because even though it had never been opened and still had the Costco price tag on it, I think it was probably purchased 6 – 10 months ago. But you know, the Costco guy just took it back like it was no big deal. So, I felt a little less shame. However, the customer standing next to me returning his items should never get over the shame that I hope he felt; though honestly, it didn’t seem like he had an ounce of shame or guilt about him. (I know that is where I got mine) because they don’t usually have them in the stores. So far, so good. But then he said he had purchased it sometime in spring 2008; he didn’t have his receipt. That’s a long, long time ago, I was thinking, but maybe it had a problem or maybe he had never used it. But then the story got even more horrible. He wasn’t returning it because the violin was defective, had a serious issue, the case wasn’t even damaged, or even because his daughter (the violin recipient) had never played it.
Nope, he was returning this year and some months old violin because his daughter was no longer interested in playing the violin in school and wouldn’t be needing this one anymore. Seriously, I know you’re saying ‘What?’ right now because I am and I was there! So, let me just spell this out very plainly: the girl had been playing this violin for over a year, had decided she no longer wanted to play the violin, so this guy wanted Costco to take it back and give him a full refund on it. And he actually stood there acting like this was the most normal return in the world. To Costco’s credit, the service representative that was processing his return only asked him once if there was anything wrong with it and didn’t say anything snarky or even get too pushy about his reason for making the return after all this time. I was thinking, doesn’t he know that you can rent musical instruments. But hey, why rent and have to actually pay, when you can essentially put a deposit on an instrument with Costco and get a full refund back when your kid doesn’t want to play it anymore;
full use for over a year for free! So, in the end the guy got his full refund on the violin and one would assume, walked away a happy Costco customer. But isn’t this a really dreadful abuse of the Costco return policy? I just have to feel that this was never, ever the Costco intent when coming up with their total satisfaction guarantee. I mean, he was satisfied, or should have been since there was nothing wrong with the violin, the only problem was typical childhood apathy to being in band after a year. Should Costco have to pay for that? Personally, I would never take something back in that situation. I’d sell it, wouldn’t you? Or more likely, it would sit around my house gathering dust. But the last thing I would consider, is that Costco should take it back and give me a refund. I still feel all wound up about this and I’m not even Costco and it happened 3 days ago. But I can’t let it go. Luckily, I have this blog where I can rant about this kind of Costco stuff.
I just find this so appalling and I think it is because I worry that ridiculousness like this guy and his old violin, will ruin it for all of us. I’m sure we all feel that repeated things like this explain what happened with the electronics return policy, since it previously had no time period stipulation either. I don’t want everyone to get stuck with things that they aren’t satisfied with or bought two of by mistake (yes, I do it all the time with books and movies) because of someone totally taking advantage of the system; it’s not fair to the rest of us. And it certainly isn’t fair to Costco.I have an affiliate relationship with Reverie. If you order from this company I and mention Sleep Sherpa, I will receive a commission. For full details visit the disclosures page. I received a free Reverie mattress and adjustable base foundation for review. Reverie is a company that pushes boundaries in the mattress industry. Their sleep systems are a holistic approach to sleep and wellness that goes beyond just comfort.
I was fortunate enough to acquire a Reverie Dream Supreme Sleep System and have been sleeping on it for the past month. It is the most customizable mattress I have ever come across. It utilizes DreamCell foam springs that can be rearranged to adjust firmness. Paired with the 8Q adjustable base, it makes for a fun and productive sleep environment. The Dream Supreme mattress and 8Q adjustable base can be purchased separately but together it makes for an amazing sleep experience. Reverie mattresses and sleep systems can be purchased online very easily. However, I would urge you to talk to one of their sleep specialists before you commit to purchasing. You may know what you want but they can explain the delivery process, configurations and any other specific questions you may have about the mattress. Their number is 888-888-5990. Another option would be to chat with them online via the website. When I placed my order they went through a questionnaire to determine the firmness configuration for my mattress.
Don’t worry if you aren’t sure of what you really want, although the mattress comes preconfigured to a particular firmness, it’s easy to rearrange the DreamCells to make it firmer or softer. After you place your order it takes a little while before it arrives at your door. You can expect around 30 days. However Reverie is very good at updates and will contact you as the delivery date approaches to schedule an exact delivery date and window. They contract with a service tha will do a white glove delivery that includes setup of the 8Q power base if you order it and takeaway of any boxes. Most mattresses I review come in 3 sometimes 4 layers. It’s usually a firm base layer for support, a medium firm transition layer and a soft top layer. The materials used in each of these layers as well as the fabric used for the cover will affect the overall feel of the mattress which can vary significantly. If you’re fortunate enough like me to test out dozens of mattresses at home, you’ll be able to find a few that you really like.
But that is a lot of time and money spent. Reverie has in large part solved this problem by offering very localized customization. Their DreamCell technology is made up of latex cylinders that come in varying levels of firmness. They can be moved around inside the mattress to adjust not only the overall feel of the mattress but you can also make certain parts of the mattress more firm or soft. Below are pictures illustrating the levles of firmness of the DreamCells from firmest to softest. As you can see there is significant variation in the cells. Here’s what they look like inside the bed. They are individually secured in place with a fabric band so that they don’t move about when you are sleeping or moving around at night. You’ll also notice that there is a zippered fabric cover that goes over the dream cells as seen below. Above the dream cells is a layer of latex which makes for an even sleep surface. Notice that it does a good job of contouring
Here’s a small clip illustrating the bounce you will get from the mattress. So what you end up with is probably the most sophisticated latex mattress on the market. The standard among latex mattresses has always been 3 layers that can be adjusted. With a Reverie mattress you get dozens of cells that can be customized like pixels on a screen. Reverie will give you some standard configurations to start but you can then modify from there. Below is an example of a configuration with one side firm and one side soft. I ordered the Dream Supreme Sleep system which includes the 8Q adjustable power base. The base itself warrants its own post since it can be use on just about any memory foam or latex mattress. The 8Q is the Lamborghini of adjustable foundations. Reverie has and still is a leader when it comes to adjustable beds. They are always ahead of the curve when it comes to innovation. The 8Q features bluetooth connectivity for your smart phone so that you can operate it with your phone or included remote.
With the smartphone app you can create saved settings to adjust the base to a particular position with the push of a button. You can also set an alarm with the app so that it will either raise you up at a particular time or turn on the massage feature. There’s a light that illuminates the floor that you can dim to your particular preference which I didn’t think I would use much but have come to find very useful when getting up in the middle of the night. The light itself does not contain blue light which will keep you up so it’s fine to leave it on all night without it disrupting your sleep. The 8Q and Dream Supreme mattress pair perfectly together. I ordered the split king mattress so that I could use the 8Q to its fullest. You can adjust each side of the bed individually. So, your partner could be sitting upright while you are asleep in a horizontal position. Each side has a separate motor for massage as well. My wife often works in bed so having an adjustable frame comes in handy especially when I’m trying to test sleep products.
The Dream Supreme mattress is a very comfortable latex mattress. One disadvantage of a split mattress, and this goes for all split king sizes is that there is a small gap between the mattresses which creates distance between you and your partner. If you want to cuddle or sprawl out to the other side of the bed, it takes a little extra effort. If you and your partner have the same sleep patterns or at least actually sleep at the same time, I would recommend a regular king size mattress on top of the 8Q. You can actually program the 8Q power base to move both sides simultaneously so 1 remote will control the whole bed. Here’s a quick overview of the 8Q adjustable base. What I like so much about the Dream Supreme mattress is the the local customization. I prefer a mattress that is a little softer towards my head so that I can still sink in but get good back support. I tend to sleep either on my stomach or at my side with one arm under my head. Placing the soft DreamCells beneath where I put my arm makes it extra comfortable.
If you are looking to upgrade your time asleep and your time awake in bed, give some serious consideration to Reverie sleep systems. If you are happy with the mattress you have, the 8Q can make it even better.I encourage you to read the reviews there as well. If you mention the The Sleep Sherpa while ordering your product, you will also qualify for a 5% accessories credit. That means you get 5% of the value of the mattress to spend on accessories. To qualify for this credit you must do the following: I highly recommend getting their fitted sheet which comes with heavy duty bands that go underneath the mattress to prevent the sheets from falling off while using the 8Q power base. Want to try out the new Reverie memory foam hybrid mattress along with the 9T adjustable base? Check out the Sleep Sherpa Showroom located in Minneapolis. Details can be found Here Disclosure: We aim to highlight products and services you might find interesting, and if you buy them, we may get a small share of the revenue.