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Retail sales up

Retail sales up �Relying on the insurance model is yesterday�s news�

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 to sell products to the sons and daughters of our end user customers,” he said. “We're trying to reach a broader demographic.”

Provider Mike Kuller says his sales were up 10% during the first quarter of 2017.

“We're growing like wildfire right now,” says Kuller, owner of Allstar Medical Supply in Walnut Creek, Calif. “The first quarter of this year, we are up 10%.”

He attributes much of that growth to the competitive bidding program, which he says eliminated most local providers in his area, enabling him to fill a widening void.

“There's just a few companies left and they are overwhelmed,” he said. “We've gone to selling about six beds a month.”

For Kuller, who sold his more traditional HME business Allstar Oxygen Services to Lincare in 2012 to focus on his retail business, selling hospital beds means he's come full circle—but without all the hassle of Medicare.

“There are more and more retail companies selling beds they never thought they'd sell,” he said. “Just selling and setting up, we can handle that.”

 

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