Mattress Maker Pines for Padding in Big Supply Crunch of 2021

Dennis Wolkin could really use more foam, the kind that’s made of polyurethane, free of spray chemicals and cut precisely so it’s certified for baby crib mattresses.

Foam is central to the Wolkin family business, Colgate Mattress in Atlanta, a third-generation company that specializes in products for kids. Sales of baby beds tend to pick up — with a nine-month lag — when the U.S. economy takes off, like it is now. But mattresses without foam don’t sell well. So Wolkin’s efforts to meet orders is inducing flashbacks to the shortages rampant at start of the pandemic.