The bed-in-a-box industry is changing the way people shop for mattresses. Consumer Reports' Mary Beth Quirk joins Cheddar to discuss the non-profit's cover story about the evolving state of the mattress industry. Despite getting all the headlines, bed-in-a-box brands still only account for a small fraction of the market.
Quirk tells us why the phenomenon stills feels like a novelty for most shoppers, despite being around for a few years. She also explains the challenge they pose to Consumer Reports' "try before you buy" policy. Helpful return policies make the practice a viable one for beds ordered online.
The online consumer editor speaks to which types of mattresses get the highest marks when it comes to quality. She also tells us whether the showroom model is working out for digital retailers. Quirk considers whether the bed-in-a-box industry is a bubble primed to pop, with almost 200 brands and counting.
An independent watchdog within the IRS reports that while taxpayer services have vastly improved, the agency is still too slow to resolve identity theft cases. And National Taxpayer Advocate Erin Collins says those delays are “unconscionable.” Erin M. Collins said in the report released Wednesday that overall the 2024 filing season went smoothly, though IRS delays in resolving identity theft victim assistance cases are worsening. It took nearly 19 months to resolve self-reported identity theft cases as of January, and Wednesday's report states that now it takes 22 months to resolve these cases.
Amazon.com Inc. surpassed $2 trillion in market value for the first time in afternoon trading on Wednesday. The push higher for Amazon’s stock market valuation comes a little more than a week after Nvidia hit $3 trillion and briefly became the most valuable company on Wall Street. Nvidia’s chips are used to power many AI application and its valuation has soared as a result. Amazon has also been making big investments in AI as global interest has grown in the technology. Most of the company’s focus has been on business-focused products.
