Bosma Enterprises’ e-commerce site targets PPE
The vice president of external affairs for Indianapolis-based Bosma Enterprises says Veterans Affairs hospitals are the nonprofit’s “bread and butter” when it comes to distributing surgical gloves. Lise Pace says sales of the personal protective equipment helps keep Bosma’s blind and visually impaired workers busy and employed. Now, distribution could ramp-up as the organization has launched an e-commerce site for the medical gloves.
In an interview with Inside INdiana Business, Pace said the online channel will help individual medical practices or other small businesses that don’t have buying power like big health systems or corporations.
“We realized that in the community, there was a need for cosmetologist, other medical professionals, food service people, they did not have a good supply chain for their gloves,” said Pace. “We thought that this was a great opportunity for people to buy our high-quality gloves while also supporting the work that we do in providing programs and employment to people who were blind.”
Bosma says each purchase, whether through its new e-commerce site or traditional distribution channels, supports training programs for people who are blind or visually impaired. The organization says its Performance Pro gloves meet quality standards for use with chemotherapy drugs, medical application, medical use and food contact.
“We have met the call during the pandemic to provide our products where they are needed, be it in the healthcare, food service or cosmetology settings, among others,” said Bosma President and Chief Executive Officer Jeffrey Mittman. “Pushing our business into the e-commerce space is an incredible step towards our organization’s growth and supporting the ability of our customers to operate as safely as possible.”
Pace says for now, the e-commerce site will only sell its Good Works Performance Pro Nitrile Exam Gloves, but it could eventually expand into medical products. Bosma offers a line of health and safety items, such as operating room cleanup kits and disposable medical kits.
It also sells a de-icer product. But for now, it’s focused on gloves.
“We wanted to crawl before we walked and walk before we run. This is just the first product. We have a full complement of exam gloves that we have in our portfolio, as well as we also have surgical gloves, and we offer other PPE,” explain Pace. “We certainly see that this would expand over time.”
The launch of the e-commerce site comes as the organization celebrates a milestone. Since the beginning of the pandemic, Bosma has distributed more than 1.4 billion gloves. Bosma workers were deemed essential during the early days of the pandemic when many companies were suspending in-office operations.
“We provide gloves to VA facilities. Our employees were deemed essential. They came into work every day. And they ensured that our nation’s his heroes and the caretakers of those people in VA facilities, were able to have a constant supply of gloves,” said Pace.
Bosma sources a large portion of its gloves from Asia, but Pace says the organization just inked a deal to start distributing an American made nitrile glove.
Click here to learn more about the e-commerce site.