Healthy Profits
Aging boomers and growing health awareness power a new breed of health-care stores.
You can't buy happiness. But if a new trend in retailing has
any merit, perhaps you can buy better health. That is, you and the
millions of people nationwide who have health and mobility problems
or who care for people who do.
This new breed of store combines the products and services of an
old-fashioned medical equipment dealership with merchandising savvy
and a level of service that makes Nordstrom look uninterested. The
formats range from intimate boutiques to sprawling superstores, but
they share a common goal: Changing the way Americans shop for
everything from wheelchairs to blood pressure monitors.
"These are not the dingy surgical supply houses most of us
think of when we think of medical supplies," says Marie
Griffin, editor in chief of Drug Store News. As the
population ages, people are going to need more help--recovering
from hospital stays, coping with mobility limitations, dealing with
chronic illnesses, and living with a panoply of major and minor
health problems. Yet most people don't know what kinds of
health aids are available to them, let alone where to find
them.
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Merchandisers who can enlighten consumers as to the
possibilities--and ignite their retail impulses in the
process--should enjoy a healthy and growing market.
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