A cast company breaking the mold is fresh off an influx of cash.
Pueblo-based ActivArmor makes waterproof, breathable splints for kids, athletes and other patients. The startup is seeking to raise $1 million, with $80,000 committed so far, founder Diana Hall said Monday.
Hall is familiar with this process. The company has raised $1.38 million since launching in 2014, including an $800,000 round in July 2018. She said ActivArmor expects to break even by the end of 2020.
While traditional casts and splints are not waterproof, ActivArmor’s — made from the same plastic used in Legos — are. They also adjust for swelling.
With additional funding, Hall said she wants to expand to new cities and find a way to automate the design of each splint. Although any doctor can prescribe an ActivArmor cast, the patient has to go to one of the startup’s 13 clinics to get scanned. There are three clinics in Colorado — in Gunnison, Denver and Pueblo — and others in Alabama, South Carolina, Florida, New York, Los Angeles, Indiana and Texas.
“We hopefully will be opening an office in Canada soon,” Hall said.
It takes 30 seconds to get an accurate scan of a patient’s injured limb. The FDA-approved splint, which is recyclable, is then made off-site.
ActivArmor’s corporate office is in Pueblo, and the company manufactures the splints in Canon City. The startup has four full-time staff members in addition to hundreds of contracted sales reps and designers.
Right now, patients tend to get their ActivArmor casts in three to four days. Hall said she’d like to have the design of the cast automated, allowing ActivArmor devices to be made and given to the patient sooner.
Children’s Hospital Colorado began offering ActivArmor casts and splints Jan. 1. Hall said this is the company’s first pediatric-focused hospital. Previously ActivArmor focused on the sports medicine industry.
“We’re excited to be offered to everyone and say that this can be a standard of care,” she said.
Hall said there are only three outcomes for a business like ActivArmor: find there’s no market and fail, have a larger company find value in the casts and splints but make them themselves, or have someone purchase the company.
“Our goal is to position ourselves for the sale of the company,” Hall said. “We feel we will be very well-positioned for that at the end of the year.”
A cast company breaking the mold is fresh off an influx of cash.
Pueblo-based ActivArmor makes waterproof, breathable splints for kids, athletes and other patients. The startup is seeking to raise $1 million, with $80,000 committed so far, founder Diana Hall said Monday.
Hall is familiar with this process. The company has raised $1.38 million since launching in 2014, including an $800,000 round in July 2018. She said ActivArmor expects to break even by the end of 2020.
While traditional casts and splints are not waterproof, ActivArmor’s — made from the same plastic used in Legos — are. They also adjust for swelling.
With additional funding, Hall said she wants to expand to new cities and find a way to automate the design of each splint. Although any doctor can prescribe an ActivArmor cast, the patient has to go to one of the startup’s 13 clinics to get scanned. There are three clinics in Colorado — in Gunnison, Denver and Pueblo — and others in Alabama, South Carolina, Florida, New York, Los Angeles, Indiana and Texas.
“We hopefully will be opening an office in Canada soon,” Hall said.
It takes 30 seconds to get an accurate scan of a patient’s injured limb. The FDA-approved splint, which is recyclable, is then made off-site.
ActivArmor’s corporate office is in Pueblo, and the company manufactures the splints in Canon City. The startup has four full-time staff members in addition to hundreds of contracted sales reps and designers.
Right now, patients tend to get their ActivArmor casts in three to four days. Hall said she’d like to have the design of the cast automated, allowing ActivArmor devices to be made and given to the patient sooner.
Children’s Hospital Colorado began offering ActivArmor casts and splints Jan. 1. Hall said this is the company’s first pediatric-focused hospital. Previously ActivArmor focused on the sports medicine industry.
“We’re excited to be offered to everyone and say that this can be a standard of care,” she said.
Hall said there are only three outcomes for a business like ActivArmor: find there’s no market and fail, have a larger company find value in the casts and splints but make them themselves, or have someone purchase the company.
“Our goal is to position ourselves for the sale of the company,” Hall said. “We feel we will be very well-positioned for that at the end of the year.”
Here is what I don’t understand. Why hasn’t [insert large medical device manufacturer here] just bought this company?