Tag: HME retail

Q. As an HME retail store, what are the three most important things I need to do in this COVID retail reality? A. No retailer could have planned for 2020. It was crazy and unprecedented. When stay-at-home and lockdown orders rolled out in March and April, the HME industry, including retailers and providers, were deemed essential businesses and able to stay open. Even so, there were limitations that required continuous shifting and pivoting to keep the HME store open, surviving and thriving.  Here...

LAS VEGAS - When a customer walks into your retail store, don't ask them what insurance they have, providers said during a panel discussion on retail at Medtrade Spring in March.It kills the mood.“They aren't in the store because they have Medicare,” said Korry Johnston, president of Copper Star Home Medical Supplies in Arizona. “They have a situation (they want you to help them with).”Instead, start a dialogue by asking open-ended questions, says Rob Baumhover, director of...

HIGH POINT, N.C. - When Advanced Home Care decided to redesign the retail store at its flagship location, it put its customers front and center.In December, the provider held a grand opening to showcase the 1,500-square-foot retail space. It features a variety of products, including CPAP devices and supplies, scooters, wheelchairs, pain relief products, and ostomy and wound care supplies. “Everything from the colors and the lighting we used to the service desk area and the layout—it's...

LAS VEGAS - Retail opportunities continue to be a major thrust at Medtrade Spring and attendees should pay attention to the advice they get from vendors at this year's show at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center. It might just give them the wake-up call they need.One of the biggest concerns among independent HME providers seeking retail business is about how to compete with major online retailer Amazon. The powerhouse platform is offering home medical equipment as a part of its massive portfolio and...

HERMITAGE, Tenn. - Provider Kevin Brown has been doing retail since 2009 and dropped insurance entirely in 2015—a decision he calls the “best move ever.”“We don't have to worry about a random audit coming down the road,” said Brown, one of the owners of All Star Medical Supply, which has locations in Hermitage and Franklin, Tenn. “You can actually work on growing your business and we get paid upfront.”Brown spoke with HME News recently about the importance...

ATLANTA — This year's Medtrade will once again dedicate several educational sessions and show floor space to retail, including a new breakfast session led by VGM's Rob Baumhover called “Rise & Retail,” on Wednesday, Oct. 17, from 7:30 a.m. to 9 a.m. “Members like the opportunity to sit with their peers in small group settings getting into the weeds of retail best practices,” said Baumhover, director of retail. Other sessions in the retail track include “Experience...

LONG BEACH, Calif. - Along with sales growth, there's another important retail metric Wayne Slavitt also tracks: repeat business.“There are two ways to grow,” says Slavitt, founder and CEO of Mobul. “You can sell existing products to new people or sell new products to existing customers.”Not only is repeat business easier, it's a good barometer of how happy a customer is with your store, said Slavitt, who said his repeat business represents about 67%, or two-thirds of his...

Business is booming for two HME providers who focus on retail.“Year to year, we are running 15% over last year,” says Wayne Slavitt, founder & CEO of Mobul in Long Beach, Calif. “Relying on the insurance model is yesterday's news.”Slavitt says his top sellers include big-ticket items like beds, lift chairs and scooters, as well as more unique items like a new line of zero gravity chairs.“The chairs are gorgeous and we have them on our floor, and that gives us a chance...