ORLANDO, FL – A committee of judges sorted through the latest products to find the best new retail items, all with the aim of helping providers bring in vital new revenue streams.
The following five winners of the 2013 Innovative HME Retail Product Awards were judged on functionality, quality/durability, aesthetics/style, environmental sustainability, and ease of retail set-up and pricing. The winners are (in no particular order):
• The Royal-EZ from Comfor Tek Seating, Alberta, Canada.
“Medtrade attendees will appreciate that this is an innovative product,” says Randy Schellenberg, president of Comfor Tek. “It addresses a very real issue—how to accommodate mobility challenged people—while providing respect and dignity. Medtrade attendees will like the ease of application and price point.”
• Briefs and Underwear from Unique Wellness, Brooklyn, NY
“We were the first incontinence product with the ability to show how a brief/underwear is not just the product itself and how it can perform—but how it can be displayed to the retail eye,” says Steve Goelman, CEO, Unique Wellness. “Buyers will understand that paying more for product will not only enhance quality of life, due to our innovative design, but actually be more cost effective as well…Providers are in dire need of boosting retail sales, and incontinence is one of the largest growing markets.”
• Socks from Nufoot – Beyond Barefoot, Diablo, Calif
“I think that the judges and the consumers like Nufoot because it is a big improvement over existing footwear solutions,” says Patricia Zweiback, president. “Comfortable, affordable, and useful footwear is a universal need among all people, be they elderly or younger…Medtrade attendees will appreciate the many useful features of Nufoot, and the vibrant and sporty styling of the product. Nufoot proves that a product can possess strong utility, attractive styling, and retail at a very affordable price of $10 per pair.”
• iWalk2.0 Hands Free Crutch from iWalk Free, Long Beach, Calif
“The product is new, yet solves an age-old problem,” enthuses Brad Hunter, director of Business Development, iWALKFree Inc. “It is retail ready. This product functions well, is appropriately priced for retail, is packaged efficiently, and merchandises itself based on package design.”
• EVE from Joint Solutions Inc, Miami, Fla
“It is an ideal product [pulse therapy/heat therapy] that potentially any woman will want to purchase, either for herself, her daughter, or her grand daughter, since many woman suffer from painful menstrual craps,” says Ed Marti, president, Joint Solutions Inc. “If the product is placed at the storefront window, it will bring customers into the store because most women will want to learn more about the product…Retail owners can place ‘trifolds’ in OBGYN offices to attract new customers. OBGYNs will want their patients to learn about this product so it’s a win-win for everyone.”
These five products will be featured in a retail products roundtable conference session called The Best New HME Retail/Cash Opportunities, moderated by Jim Greatorex, owner of Black Bear Medical, on Wednesday, 10/9/13, from 1:30-2:30 in W308 A/B. Winning manufacturers will be allotted 5 to 7 minutes to discuss their product with the audience.
Winning products will be featured in a window display in the expanded Medtrade Retail Design Center on the show floor. “I, and many others, go to Medtrade looking for the next great cash opportunity,” says Greatorex. “This year providers will have a chance to expand their business, and in some situations, be one of the first to promote a product.”
Whittling down the bounty of products to just five was a tall order, but Greatorex and the other judges looked for products with large potential markets. Like all educational sessions, The Best New HME Retail/Cash Opportunities is included with the regular conference fee.