SuperHandy Cares recharges mobility market

ONTARIO, Calif. – SuperHandy has applied its niche in the outdoor and industrial market for well-built and cost-effective equipment to the mobility market and launched in the U.S. 

SuperHandy Cares, which offers scooters, wheelchairs and floor transfer lifts, was a first-time exhibitor at Medtrade in March. 

“They also applied their Li-Ion battery technology to mobility products, making them light and portable, not just for the elderly but anyone who wants to get around properly,” said Chris Blackmore, senior national director of sales for the company. “They felt there was a technology (play) there.” 

SuperHandy has been manufacturing outdoor and industrial tools and products like garden tillers and chainsaws for more than 35 years. 

Blackmore, who previously helped build a complex rehab business for Merits Health Products, was on hand at Medtrade to build a provider network for SuperHandy Cares. 

“They started building these products two years ago and selling them online, but the week before Medtrade they brought me onboard and launched a provider network,” he said. “They realized that the majority of this equipment is sold through provider networks. The ones that are successful, anyway.” 

While SuperHandy Cares continues to sell products online, Blackmore’s goal is to build a provider network that’s “strong enough” that the company will no longer have to do that. At press time, the company had more than 100 providers selling its products, he says. 

“We do have a minimum advertised price (MAP),” he said. “We’re going to keep everyone’s feet to the fire.” 

SuperHandy Cares plans to launch two additional power wheelchairs in the next few months, Blackmore says. It currently offers two wheelchairs, one that weighs 39 pounds (without battery) and has a weight capacity of 220 pounds and another that weighs 42 pounds (without battery) and has a weight capacity of 330 pounds. The latter retails at about $1,100, a price point that he says is considerably less than the competition. 

“We’re going to continue to make (the portfolio) that much bigger,” he said.