SOUTHEAST SUCCESS

Written By: LARRY STEVENS

Iwant to report on a Med One success that has been growing and gaining momentum right under our noses without fanfare and almost without being recognized. With our foundational business vertical – medical equipment leasing – we have been able to be a nationwide company and serve customers in virtually every state without having to have a physical presence anywhere other than our headquarters in Sandy, Utah. When we entered the equipment rental business, however, the dynamics changed significantly.

Brent and I originally envisioned being in the rental business without having to invest in the infrastructure of a “local presence” such as real estate, vehicles, or direct sales representatives, for that matter. Our plan was to partner with those who had already made those investments and needed more equipment available to rent. For several years, this strategy worked fine for us, and we projected our growth upon finding more and more strategic partners to utilize our equipment. The glaring deficiency in this strategy was that we had no control over the outcome, and we had no ability to distinguish Med One as a significant player in the marketplace.

In 2012, we determined that we had to face the realities and make the investments that were needed to really enter the rental business. We opened our first location in Corona to serve hospitals in Southern California. We began hiring people to represent us and serve our customers in that area. We had some important and strategic wins as we worked very hard to establish a strong offering in that area. Later, we entered the northern California area by establishing our initial office in Hayward. Our growth in California has been very impressive, and today we have seven successful offices in California, and we have established a significant market share as a leading provider of peak-need rental equipment.

Just over six years ago, we made the strategic decision to establish a market that was separate from California to minimize the high concentration of our assets in one location and provide a place to re-deploy any of our underutilized equipment. We chose the southeast United States with the expectation that we could eventually establish a nice business unit in that region. We began by opening an office in the Atlanta area. Slowly but surely, we began introducing ourselves to the hospitals in the area. The challenges were daunting because no one knew who we were, and there were a plethora of very prominent competitors with multiple offices throughout the area. Four years ago, we opened an office in Sanford, Florida, to serve customers in the Orlando area and Central Florida region. In 2020, we established the latest of our locations in Morrisville, North Carolina. In addition to those physical offices, we have added our Puerto Rico operation to the southeast region.

Revenue growth and customer awareness have been slow and improving steadily. For the most part, the southeast has been overshadowed by the impressive growth of our California operations.

Thanks, however, to the dedicated and consistent efforts of our sales teams in our newest region, we have established a very loyal customer following. Although we started with 100% of the customers having no idea who Med One is, today we would estimate that over 80% of our possible customers know very well who Med One is and what we can do for them. Today we are a very competitive player in that market. According to Tom Lindsey – National SVP of Sales, “What makes us the most competitive in the southeast region is our COMMITMENT to providing the best equipment by the finest people - who truly care about the customer - at a fair price.”

During 2021, through tremendous hard work by a dedicated team of sales and operations professionals - the southeast region has experienced unprecedented revenue growth. They have also steadily added to their list of active customers. We enjoy a very strong and positive customer awareness in all the areas of the region. In our latest reporting month, the southeast has established itself as the number one revenue producing region in our company. Starting from a point six years ago when we weren’t even sure if anyone would give us a chance to do business with them, this is how the picture has emerged this year.

This has been a slow, gradual process for our team in the southeast. During the 2020 pandemic and more so because of the 2021 re-emergence, we have seen a strong demand for our equipment, and we have shipped truckload after truckload of equipment across the country to meet the needs of our customers. Through all of this, we have been able to demonstrate to our existing as well as our new customers that Med One is a serious player and we have the capacity to take care of them.

In the southeast, we have a dedicated and hard-working team of operational employees who maintain, repair, and deliver equipment to provide for the needs of our customers.

Chad Agliam is our operations manager in the Alpharetta (Atlanta) office. He was our very first operations employee in the region and has been with us since the office was established. He does a wonderful job and has managed the growth in this location very well. He is supported by Donald Poles, who is our biomed technician, as well as our drivers who deliver equipment, Nakash Abdulkarim and Brandon South. This team is key to the impressive growth in our customer base in Georgia, and they have met every challenge that has been thrown at them.

Edgar Galan is our operations manager in the Sanford (Orlando) office. He has been there since the opening of the facility. Edgar is a passionate advocate for Med One, and he is a key element in why so many hospitals in that area have switched to Med One as one of their key suppliers. The Sanford operations team is rounded out with David McLean, our biomed technician, and Christopher Ebert and Peter Otto, our drivers who deliver equipment to the hospitals and other healthcare providers.

Our newest office is the Morrisville, North Carolina location. Zach Poray was sent from our Southern California region to open and manage this new office. As a new employee, Zach has distinguished himself in an outstanding way by his willingness to accept any assignment he is given and do a great job. Luis Lazo is our biomed technician, and our drivers are Tyrone Sims and Barry Brown. This team has made a major impact as they have served the hospitals in the Carolinas, and our revenue has shown significant growth as a result.

Our sales team in the southeast is headed up by Karen Raven – Regional Sales Manager. Karen is a Med One veteran and has fulfilled many different roles at Med One. Before she joined Med One, she was a prodigious user of Med One’s leasing expertise as we were able to team up together to do many, many lease transactions benefiting her customers at ALARIS Medical Systems. Karen has a group of all-stars under her direction.

Bryan Dabney covers the Atlanta territory. He is a respiratory therapist, and he sold respiratory equipment prior to joining Med One. He has taken Atlanta from zero and has created an attractive revenue base. He has us poised to win some very lucrative contracts that are coming up for bid in the year ahead.

Skip Horton, who covers the Carolinas, is another long-time Med One veteran. Prior to joining Med One, Skip worked for ALARIS Medical Systems selling infusion systems. Skip has spent 35 years serving hospitals in his area, and through his efforts, Med One has done leases with a high percentage of them. Skip has done a tremendous job in growing our revenue in his territory more than we could have ever hoped.

Mike Schmitt joined us in Central Florida in 2020. He is new to the medical equipment rental business, but he has done a masterful job in “lighting a fire” in his sales area. In the most recent month, his territory was number one in the country. With Mike’s enthusiasm and commitment, we expect that he’ll stay on top for a long time.

Susan Mingle takes care of our customers in the Caribbean as our Director of International Sales. We have several notable hospitals throughout the Caribbean that rely on our equipment and Susan’s expertise to achieve excellence in patient outcomes. Susan also brings her extensive background and education into play by providing education and training support for our entire sales force. Susan is the star performer in many of the equipment training videos that have been produced by Med One and are available on our YouTube channel.

Tom Lindsey – Senior Vice President of Sales, was very instrumental in “hatching” the concept of Med One opening in the Southeastern United States. He understood the reasons why we needed to be there. He worked hand-inhand with company ownership to develop an operating plan for the area, and he has overseen the effort from day one. As he has with all the other sales and service regions that he has established for Med One, he has been “hands-on” and totally committed to success. Tom has been the driving force in the establishment of each of our regions and has been a critical key to our overall success as a company.

Rounding out the Med One team in the southeast is Amy Vizanko, the Equipment Finance Sales Executive for our leasing division. Amy works directly with all the hospitals in the region and has done a fabulous job in telling the Med One story and serving the needs of our customers. In Amy’s words, “On the leasing side, we are like no other. There is not one finance institution out there that focuses only on healthcare. We understand and vet the customer’s needs, and we understand how the customer must navigate their acquisitions internally. We have many advantages, but in comparison competitively, our sales reps understand what the actual devices are, how they work and the importance these products have on staff utilization, and most importantly, how they can improve patient care and outcomes. We have the most creative and extensive offerings for our customers to acquire their much needed medical devices in situations where they do not have the cash.

Like many others on our sales team in the southeast, Amy, who also worked for ALARIS, knew Med One very well before she came to work for us, “Being a former vendor has helped significantly because my story is simple and true… I came to work for Med One because I was fully aware and always appreciated the way they took care of me as a vendor and helped me take care of customers’ acquisition needs. Now I get to be a part of this company and prove to other vendors and customers that we stand true on our pillars of excellence: simplicity, responsiveness, and creativity.”

The Southeast Region is one of the shining jewels in Med One’s crown. This is what Karen Raven has to say about the region, “We have tremendous opportunities in our region. Covid has helped us gain more customers. We are very competitive with our pricing, which means that we are gaining new business and keeping rentals out there longer. We are getting positive reviews from our customers for the service we provide. Relationships are building with our new customers even though it has been difficult with little to no face time during the Covid shutdowns. We are building a strong equipment inventory which has helped us to maintain customer retention because equipment is available when they call. We have a great team who work well together and help each other.”

We have been able to become successful in the face of overwhelming odds. We have significant competition from at least three national vendors – all of whom have many more offices than we do, and they all have access to the major GPO contracts. Against this competition, Med One has emerged as a significant force in this area of the country and is poised to enjoy significant expansion and growth. As in all the other areas we serve, our employees have been the key. They work tirelessly. They reflect the Med One culture and the Med One way of doing things. To reiterate the sentiments of Tom Lindsey, “What makes us the most competitive in (all of the areas that we serve) is our COMMITMENT to providing the best equipment by the finest people - who truly care about the customer - at a fair price.” That, in a nutshell, is exactly what sets us apart in every one of the regions we serve, and it will always continue to be the Med One way of doing things.