‘Shortest putt’ yet: Numotion expands into Canada with Motion merger
By HME News Staff
Updated 9:28 AM CDT, Fri October 10, 2025
BRENTWOOD, Tenn., and TORONTO – Numotion’s merger with Motion marks the company’s largest deal to date, but in many ways, it was the simplest, says CEO Mike Swinford.
Numotion and Motion announced their intent to join forces in July and finalized the deal in September. With 46 locations across five provinces, Motion represents Numotion’s first expansion into the Canadian market.
“I’ve probably done 100-plus transactions throughout my career, and I don’t believe there has been a better fit culturally than Numotion and Motion – the passion for the company, one another and the customer,” said Swinford, who recently traveled across multiple provinces to host town halls with Motion employees. “Typically, that’s the most difficult aspect of bringing two organizations together, but in this regard – even though it’s our largest deal – culturally, it has been the shortest putt. That part really excites me.”
A decade in the making: Why now was the right time
The merger is the culmination of a long-standing relationship between the two companies. Numotion has had its eyes on entering the Canadian market for nearly a decade. Swinford first visited Motion in Toronto in 2015, and since then, the companies have collaborated on everything from best practices to technology investments.
“It has to be the right time for the buyer and the seller,” he said. “Our political situation – which, depending on the administration, can involve tariffs and other international challenges – always comes into play, and we thought and Motion thought now is as good a time as any to be expanding internationally.”
Preserving identity while scaling operations
The companies will maintain their distinct identities and leadership structures. Each will retain its name and branding in its respective market, allowing Numotion to continue as an American-based company with American-based leadership, and Motion to remain Canadian-based with Canadian leadership, Swinford says.
“That’s what each country wants,” he said. “But we can still leverage our size and scale to help each other out, while still being local with referral sources and within our states and provinces.”
No layoffs, just leverage: Operational synergies take center stage
The merger has not resulted in any workforce reductions. Instead, the focus is on leveraging operational efficiencies and shared resources, Swinford says.
“We buy from the same companies, so it’s more about where we can improve processes and the supply chain,” he said. “We’ve started to connect our teams and we’re doing things related to managing our fleets and putting content together for our techs and assistive technology professionals (ATPs). We need Sue, we need the leadership team and we need the finance team to continue doing the great things they’ve done. That was a huge part of the partnership – keep the entire team in place and fund them to continue investing in and growing the business.”
Retail, repair and new frontiers: Learning across borders
Both companies also see opportunities to grow by sharing expertise in key areas. One area of mutual interest is retail and new lines of business. While Numotion has a strong e-commerce presence through its SpinLife website, Motion excels in retail through brick-and-mortar locations.
Service and repair is another area where the companies aim to leverage synergies.
“It’s early days, but what (Numotion) is doing around service and repair is something we’re keen to learn about, around how we can improve our capabilities for a better client experience,” said Sue Gilpin, CEO of Motion. “There are also potentially new lines of business, like speech and augmentative devices. There are so many cool things that Numotion is doing that could be an opportunity in the Canadian space.”
“And vice versa,” Swinford said. “We have north of 30 different opportunities.”
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