Letter from the Vice President, Jim Greatorex September 2021

A couple weeks ago, we welcomed many Live at Home members to our hometown of Waterloo, Iowa for the 20th annual Heartland Conference. There was certainly lots of excitement in the air and a buzz about the new programs launched at this year’s conference. We had great face-to-face conversations, a phenomenal keynote speaker, great outside social fun, and of course all the chocolate chip cookies one could want. Our Heartland committee did a great job providing a safe environment while still keeping all the magic that this conference brings every year.

Heartland Recap of New Programs 

AAG – Our new home equity financing partner made a very good impression on members. They bring to us a highly regarded company who helps those over 62 use home equity as a resource to finance home access modifications. We believe that they will enhance any company that chooses to engage them. Their passion for our industry and helping us with our senior retail customers will enhance your business. To learn more about their program, please join us for a webinar with AAG Tuesday, October 5 at 1 p.m. CT. Click here to register.

AAG is very connected into the senior service market and will be more than just a financial resource you can trust. They bring a true partnership interested in helping you grow your business and sharing relationships in your market. Many studies show that home equity is and will be a highly utilized financing resource for home improvement projects for seniors in the next 10 years. Partnering with the #1 Home Equity Lender in the U.S. puts our members in an excellent position to service all the needs their customers may need.

Senior Home Services – Jim Bland, Founder and President of Senior Home Services (SHS), brings a unique new concept to marketing to the aging in place market. He has retail rights to breakthrough senior home safety technology that gets his company welcomed into seniors homes. SHS then can educate consumers on the need for home modifications. He has partnered with VGM Live at Home to exclusively provide the home modification services to our Select members. He has contracts with several national home care companies, home health agencies, and hospitals to provide his technology and bring quality home accessibility contractors to their clients.

Since May, in the mid- Atlantic market where SHS is doing test marketing, they have provided 12 leads that produced business for the member selected, and most were over $10,000. He is also providing members with a simple revenue share plan which could easily bring in recurring revenue to your business with no upfront costs or inventory needed.

He launched his program at the Heartland Conference but will officially launch this exciting new program with our members on October 26 with a webinar at 1 p.m. CT. Stay tuned for registration details. I guarantee this new program is worth your time to check out. Jim Bland and Senior Home Services offer some innovative value for LAH members. Also, check out Jim Bland's testimonial here on the services of AAG. 

Lowes – Lowes also came to Heartland and made a big splash with LAH members! They have enhanced their Lowes for Pro’s program and have plans soon to have a wholesale program for ADA-compliant home access products that can be delivered to the work site with a very fast turnaround. We expect more details on that sometime near the beginning of 2022.

They have also hired Vern Martell, who also owns Safe Living Solutions in NC, to run their program for home accessibility. Many of you may know Vern since his company is a fellow member, and he has spoken at several Heartland Conferences. Their home access program will be called Lowes Livable Homes, and they are jumping into the retail side of the business by providing ramps and stairlifts. With over 1,700 stores, they certainly will make an impact in the industry. The good news is that they very much want to work with Live at Home members and will have protocols in place to make sure only qualified companies install the products they sell.

They have also partnered with our primary stairlift manufacturer, Harmar, for their retail program, and they will welcome all eligible members to join with them. The final details of the program have not been shared with us at the time of this writing, but members we talked to expressed optimism that the partnership holds value. In the retail market, getting invited into the home is the key to success, and this relationship should get members into homes they never may have gotten into. Most clients don’t just need stairlifts and ramps, so the opportunity exists for a member to get a new customer.

Lastly, Lowes will bring a high amount of consumer awareness to the industry, creating large demand for our services which will bring great new customers to all involved. Lowes wants very much to work with us and we believe that partnering with them will bring positive growth to our industry. Once all the details are ironed out, we will have webinars and Lowes reps at our events to share with members the whole program they offer. 

Entrematic Automatic Door Opener -  Many members got their first look at the Entrematic Door Opener at Heartland. Unfortunately, we had ordered demo doors for the units to be displayed on, but shipments of those doors from Canada delayed us being able to get them in time. Tell me if that sounds familiar! Our rep did come with a 6” high door that was able to show all the features of the product and provided training for registered attendees. If you haven’t explored this product yet, please check it out on our website. It’s capabilities and free app show it to be the highest-quality residential opener currently on the market. We have a few demo units left at a price of $950 each (operator only), but that price will only be available through October 8.

We are excited about all the new programs and products and with the quality of the partners involved. Please reach out to either me or Jessica to learn more.

Also, mark your calendar for next year’s Heartland Conference, back in it’s usual time slot of June 13-15 2022. 

As always, we thank you for your membership. Our goal is to help you grow your business and become the go-to home access contractor in your market.

Jim Greatorex