It all started in 1999, when our founder, J. Shane Coker, after doing his walkabout in music, art & science, opened an unassuming little mattress store as a young man in Austin, Texas.
He had sort of grown up around the industry, and after carrying all the big traditional brands as well as new fads like the big memory foam & air brands, and after experiencing all the different technologies and core components that were on the market, he came to realize firsthand what worked and what didn’t, what was real and what was fad.
It didn’t take long to come to the rather shocking realization that the normal, non-natural mattresses offered to the public were too often heavily laden with toxic chemicals: volatile organic compounds off-gassing from chemical fire retardants, petroleum-based polyurethane foam, adhesives and the rest. Many of these chemicals were known carcinogens, endocrine disruptors, developmental neurotoxins, and obesogens. In response, he began carrying the organic, natural, and non-toxic mattress brands that were available and emerging at the time, which were few.
And he gained a purpose.
A few years later, after opening a sister store in Houston, Texas, Houston Natural Mattress, and after being involved on the ground floor of getting natural & certified organic mattresses and the reasons why they are so important out to the public, everything offered in the quickly expanding local mattress stores was either a natural or certified organic product, completely free of harmful chemical fire retardants. So he changed the names of the stores to Austin Natural Mattress & Houston Natural Mattress, and it took off in a huge way. Local Houstonians & Austinites really took to the idea of a chemical-free sleeping environment and healthier mattress options.
He also brought in Steve Chandler, Dustin Reiter, Charles Roberts & Hollis Chandler, all longtime professionals in the industry, as well as his wife Amanda, and together over decades they built Austin & Houston Natural Mattress into what it is today. They brought in the finest curated collection of organic mattresses & bedding on the planet, as well as creating their own natural & certified organic brand, and even began to be called upon to give talks about chemicals in household products to bodies & university students alike. They also created their “Purity Ratings,” a system by which to codify varying levels of chemical purity.
Today, they are still the same team, over a quarter of a century in business and all that carries with it: The knowledge and experience that comes along with having helped mold and shape the natural sleep zeitgeist, the knowledge of how to give the absolute best white glove customer service to stay in business as small locals in a corporate big box chain world. They are the oldest locally owned organic sleep shops in Texas, with showrooms that boast the most carefully curated and largest selection of natural, organic, non-toxic & luxury mattresses in Texas.
Hollis Chandler, Sleep Guru
Hollis has called Austin home for 50 years. For over a decade, Hollis has been with Austin Natural Mattress and works just two streets over from the neighborhood where he grew up. Hollis started as warehouse manager before being promoted from within to sales. Before joining the team, he spent over 18 years in the Austin hospitality scene as a lead bartender and restaurant manager at spots like Jazz on 6th Street, the Parish and El Mercado, Good Eats. He and his wife of 14 years have two sons. At Austin Natural Mattress, we are family. In fact, Hollis’s youngest and Charles’s son are close friends, and often visit music venues together, while his oldest is an Austin firefighter. In his spare time, Hollis goes to the gym with his boys and loves cooking for family and friends.
Charles Roberts, Manager/Sleep Guru
Charles has called Austin home for 30 years, and joined Shane at Austin Natural Mattress over two decades ago. He was integral in helping Shane create the business from scratch. As store manager, he brings a unique background rooted in sustainability and the Austin music scene. Charles volunteered for years with Ecology Action, a local recycling nonprofit, and created and managed the recycling program at the Austin City Limits Music Festival. He also hosted his own radio show for 14 years and has recorded countless local, national, and international bands in private sessions. A lifelong lover of music, live shows, and quality sound, Charles is a true audiophile, and you will typically experience this in the store via his handmade tube vinyl setup. He has been married to his wife for 10 years, and together they have one child. In his free time, he is probably either listening to music or at a concert.
Amanda Demuth-Coker, MSN, RN
Amanda has been working in logistics and operations for Austin Natural Mattress for years. Originally from Nebraska, she got to Texas as soon as she could. She brings over 15 years of health-focused experience as a registered nurse and is an active member of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine, which emphasizes six pillars of health, two of which are restorative sleep and avoidance of harmful chemicals. She also brings extensive logistics expertise from her time serving in the United States Army as a supply specialist. Amanda leads the designer trade program, coordinates events, writes health-focused blog articles and works to bring in new and exciting products and brands. Outside of work, she enjoys gardening and writing. Amanda is married to Shane, and together they are a blended family with five children and two grandchildren.
Shane Coker, Owner
Shane settled down in Austin after his “walk-about” in music art & science, after playing shows in Austin- over 30 years ago as a young man. He opened a small sleep shop that sold the products one would expect to find in a conventional bed shop. Early on he learned what was inside the mattresses he was selling. This revelation turned into a life-long passion and pushed him to make the change to creating and selling only natural, certified organic and non-toxic products. These include the most carefully curated collection of natural & certified organic brands in the country, as well as his own brand, The Natural Mattress Home. The company has since grown to include Houston Natural Mattress. In his spare time, Shane enjoys reading, science, history, art, dungeons & dragons with life-long friends, attending concerts and being outdoors. Shane is married to Amanda, and together they have five children and two grandchildren.
J. Walt Adair, MS
Walt supports our team as a Business Consultant, bringing 19 years of advanced analytics and reporting experience. He translates complex data into valuable insights and has established repeatable processes that strengthen our forecasting and inventory controls. Walt’s background includes senior leadership in biostatistics, supporting health-related research and process standardization. He partners closely with our leadership team to turn numbers into actionable business strategies.
