Everything Medical
Joe Adelman
Location: Redding, CA
Website : everythingmedicalonline.com
Services: Home Medical Equipment, Mobility Solutions
Joe Adelman knows the value of a good parking lot. He’ll prove it with a blow-the-doors-off grand opening, too, now that he has a new 10,000 square foot building on Athens Avenue and an acre of parking.
Adelman, owner of Everything Medical, has put in the hours to earn his new place: managing his uncle’s pharmacy and medical supply company out of college, then working as a medical manufacturer’s sales rep before opening his own place in Redding in 2008. He lived with mom and dad, took inventory on consignment, hosted free walker repair days at every care facility in town, and was able to hire his first employee, who’s still on the team 9 years later.
All that work caused a problem though: “we maxed out our 4,500 square foot space on Hilltop Drive. We went from one to 15 employees, had five vans, and only six parking spaces,” he remembers. There were even desks set up in hallways. “It was a good launching point but we outgrew it.”
He found the Athens Avenue building, but it wasn’t technically for sale, since it was part of a soon-to-close shopping center.
“My realtor put me in touch with Cornerstone Bank, who put me in touch with Superior California Economic Development, who saved me a ton of money on my down payment,” he explains.
Everything Medical was able to put an offer on the building contingent on the shopping center closing, and when the sale went through and escrow closed on December 15, 2016, it was time to remodel…. And for the loan to really show its merit.
“An appraisal was done which included improvements, so my loan funded all the remodeling, improvements, new chairs and computers,” Adelman says. “All that really helped the cash flow. There was no money out of pocket for improvements, so I would definitely recommend that style of loan.”
The new location opened in early April, allowing the business to substantially expand its inventory, which has increased sales. Morale has improved significantly, too: gone are the days of hallway desks and parking scarcities.
“We are planning a grand opening,” says Adelman, “that won’t just be ‘here’s our new building.’ We’re having a health fair BECAUSE of the parking space. We’ve invited radio stations, 50 different vendors to have booths, guest speakers including doctors, food, raffle prizes, you name it. So having the parking space is going to be good for us.”
Adelman recommends other businesses considering purchasing a building check out their options – including SCED – and to “really do the homework and make sure there are no surprises. In the end, it’s always better to pay your own mortgage than someone else’s.”
And to own your own acre of parking? The possibilities are endless.