Wheelchair users navigate an entirely different world than other people. It’s estimated that there are millions of regular wheelchair users living in the US. However, this figure does not account for those who temporarily use wheelchairs while they recover from illness or other medical conditions in a hospital or assisted living facility. Perhaps one of the most common and strenuous mobility challenges these people face is moving from a bed to a wheelchair (or vice versa). And this challenge affects not only them, but also the medical workers who assist them. 

Medical workers often use some amount of physical exertion to transfer a patient between a wheelchair and bed. This exposes the patient and the healthcare worker to risk of injury. In fact, healthcare workers suffer from musculoskeletal disorders 5.5 times more than the average US worker. The existing equipment meant to help with this task is often cumbersome and may be limited by the wheelchair user’s weight. A better solution is needed — one that reduces the risk for healthcare workers and wheelchair users while also bringing convenience and ease to the process.

One company that believes it has the right answer to this problem is UpLyft. The firm is founded on the principle of providing a superior solution for individuals needing to be transferred between a bed and a wheelchair. The company’s namesake product is the first FDA-compliant ‘self transfer system’ that moves an individual from a supine position (lying on one’s back) to sitting in their wheelchair. The process takes about one minute to complete and can be done by a healthcare worker or by the patient themselves. All the healthcare worker needs to do is push a few buttons on the device for it to work. If the wheelchair user is operating it, the process can be completed with a pair of joysticks that enable easy control over the device. Today, UpLyft is protected by 12 patents, three of which are in the US. It also has nine other patents pending.

UpLyft’s product is exciting and a much needed innovation. But management’s plans for monetization are exciting as well. There isn’t just one version of the product planned for sale. The original UpLyft device will be capable of handling in excess of 300 pounds of weight. It will retail at $5,995 per unit for consumers who want or need one at home. An alternative to buying it outright, though, is to pay for it through an installment plan. This will come at a cost of $145 per month for 60 months for a total cost of $8,700. This covers the version without the hoist. With it, the cost will be $8,995 (listed elsewhere as $10,000, so there seems to be a pricing disparity in the firm’s filing statements). The per-month cost is $225, which works out to $13,500.

Management is also planning an ‘industrial-grade’ version of the product. These will be capable of handling patient weights of up to 600 pounds, and the units themselves will be built extra-wide. The planned pricing here is set at $19,995. Caregivers can rent the units out for $1,600 per month. Options for nursing homes, with pricing set at $7,500 per month, will also be offered up. Though not stated outright, it’s likely the company will benefit from selling repair parts and services. Revenue from warranties on its products could also be an attractive avenue for it to explore.

Because of how early-stage UpLyft is, the company has not yet generated any revenue. Expenses have also been quite low. In 2018, the firm lost $147,205. Last year, this loss narrowed to $13,294. Operating cash flow was -$127,118 in 2018, and it was actually positive to the tune of $5,705 in 2019. If the firm can raise the round of funding it hopes to achieve by this September, it plans to start delivering units to customers this holiday season.

The market that UpLyft operates in is rather opaque. Different sources provide different estimates of its size. One source, pegs the market at about $8.9 billion in size as of 2019. With a projected annualized growth rate of 7.2%, it should reach $12.6 billion by 2024. Another source estimates the space was worth $24 billion last year. A 2.9% annualized growth rate through 2026 will place it at $29.3 billion in size by the end of the forecast period. A third source, meanwhile, does not give a starting size to the patient handling equipment market. But it does cite the world’s elderly population growing from 962 million in 2017 to 2.1 billion by 2050 as a reason for the space growing to $40 billion by 2026. That same source estimates that the home patient handling segment of the space is worth about $9 billion today.

There are other ways to estimate the full market potential that exists in the industry. For starters, consider the number of wheelchair users today. Globally, that figure is about 75 million, 3 million of whom are located in the US. At $5,995 per unit on the low end, this implies a maximum market size of $17.99 billion domestically and $449.63 billion across the globe. In addition to this, there are 6,210 hospitals in the US and about 19,217 of them worldwide. If each hospital were to buy just one industrial-grade unit, the opportunity would total $124.17 billion in the US and $384.24 billion globally. In addition to homes and hospitals, another potential customer would be nursing homes. One estimate pegs the number of nursing homes in the US at 15,600. This would imply an opportunity here at home of $311.92 billion with just one unit per location.

Using these three types of customers, the maximum market in the US looks to be $454.08 billion. Worldwide, this grows to $1.80 trillion. It is important to mention, though, that it’s unlikely the firm will ever catch anywhere near these figures. On the individual ownership side, not every wheelchair user is likely to want or will be able to afford the device. Competition still exists from incumbents. Also, even though the product is patent protected, other options will come onto the market. Even so, capturing a sliver of this market could result in significant value creation for shareholders in the long run.

The team at UpLyft is quite sizable given how early stage the company is. Having said that, the top two individuals at the firm warrant the most attention. The first of these is Craig Misrach, the company’s President and a member of its Board of Directors. At this time, he is also the Managing Director of Poppy Capital, a firm focused on the acquisition of growth-stage businesses. He is also presently the founder and CEO of Ampla Holdings, an advisory service provider. In the past, he served as an Investment Advisor at AB Bernstein. The other key individual at UpLyft is Anton Simson. He’s the business’ founder and CTO. Previously, he served as the President of Eesti Engineering. Before that, he was the Director of Advanced Boat Programs for L-3 Communications. He has also worked for several years at both General Dynamics and McDonnell Douglas. Simson holds three different degrees from MIT.

Based on all of the data available, our team has rated UpLyft as a Deal To Watch. This high ranking reflects our confidence in the firm’s founders and the patents they have been able to secure. The company’s product is also easy to understand and obviously superior to existing solutions. The impact alone from the decrease in workplace injuries the business might be able to create is noteworthy on its own. The firm’s multi-faceted launch strategy is also logical, and while the business has not generated any revenue yet, losses have been modest. The valuation cap initially appears to be a bit lofty at $6.6 million given how early stage the business is. But when you consider the patents protecting it and how quickly the company expects to get to market, the pricing is probably about right. With the exception of the absence of revenue, we haven’t really identified anything that should be considered negative about the firm.