Page 16 - HME Business, September 2017

The
Distributed Provider
A look at some of the strategies and services that are helping providers outsource inven- tory, distribution and fulfillment
to drive down costs, increase convenience and expand revenues.
By Joseph Duffy
elcome to the world of next- level business efficiency for HME
providers. Although practices such as enhanced inventory management, predic-
tive ordering, warehousing and product delivery services have existed as business strategies for quite some time, they are finding their way into the world of home medical equipment. And now, there are now turnkey services providing these function- alities that are gaining in popularity among HME providers, in part because of two driving forces:
• In an industry of cuts, caps and competitive bidding, turnkey services are a way to obtain fairly low-maintenance, low-cost cash sale revenue streams.
• The advent of digital business has caused a sea change on how customers obtain products and information, and turnkey services offering e-commerce modules are an easy way for HME providers to jump into the digital space and meet customer expectations.
How a Turnkey System Works
As a basic function, a turnkey service usually gives an HME provider access to products that
they don’t own, and lets them market those products as if they were part of their own inven- tory. HME providers will sell these products in
a number of different ways, such as via their website, print catalog, in-store, or even during at-home visits. Once a product is sold, the distributer/manufacturer picks the product(s) from inventory, fulfills the order for the HME provider and delivers the product to the custom- er’s residence or, sometimes, to the HME store.
This service is usually invisible to the consumer, with packaging material indicating only the HME provider. A turnkey service can be used for both retail and funded products (see “Legal Perspective: Selling Funded Products Using Turnkey Services,” page 20), although currently the majority of transac- tions through these services are cash sales.
The benefits of using a turnkey system can vary widely across different services but some of the typical benefits you find among platforms include:
• Access to cash sale revenue streams
• Little or no upfront costs to boost your product inventory
• No warehouse rental or personnel costs • Frees up in-store space
• Creates a digital business platform
Let’s take a look at three companies offering inventory, fulfillment and home delivery services for HME providers.
Health Mobius (www.healthmobius.com)
The mission of Health Mobius is to offer HME, DME, pharmacy and home healthcare business customers a way to grow retail sales without having to manage an e-commerce presence.
The company started out as health, medical and fitness product distributors in 1999
and today offer more than 25,000 products, including aids for daily living, bath safety, incontinence, compression and post-surgical garments, diagnostic, respiratory, orthopedic, and fitness/physical therapy. Kamal J. Haddad, CEO and Founder of Health Mobius, says
that more important than the mix of cash sale items is the company’s ability to provide these items in a turnkey, all-inclusive, fully managed web store that is branded for the HME customer. Heath Mobius offers customers two platform choices:
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