Rehab Management (RM) recently interviewed Steve Sarns, vice president of sales and marketing, NuStep Inc, Ann Arbor, Mich.

Rehab Management (RM): Please tell us about your company. How was it founded?

Steve Sarns, vice president of sales and marketing, NuStep Inc

Steve Sarns: My father, Dick Sarns, CEO and president, began his career as a successful entrepreneur in the early 1960s when he developed what has become the world's leading heart-lung machine, which has been used in millions of heart surgeries worldwide. In 1987, he founded the company now known as NuStep Inc with my mother, Norma, who has progressive MS and uses the NuStep recumbent cross trainer every day. I came up with the original concept of the NuStep in 1991 and further developed the idea with Mark Hildebrandt, VP of research and development and key designer. Both of us are exercise physiologists who earned our master's degrees at the University of Michigan. My educational focus and passion is in the area of exercise and gerontology, and in the early 1990s, fitness products were focused primarily on the young and fit population, even though the older individual and those experiencing chronic conditions had the most to gain from exercise. Mark's expertise is in designing a product that is ergonomically correct, well designed, and meets the variety of needs of our customers.

RM: Describe your products. What sets them apart from your competitors?

Sarns: Our product is the original patented recumbent cross trainer that is used widely in rehab, fitness, and home settings. Our challenge was to design a product that would specifically enable those with chronic disease to safely and steadily improve their health, fitness and mobility. The commitment of our NuStep team in creating innovative world-class products that exceed customer expectations sets us apart from companies that attempt to duplicate our creations. Our design team actively solicits feedback from our customers, and this process remains integral to our design changes. Our focus, as the originator and visionary of recumbent cross training, helps keep us ahead of other companies as we focus on continually improving the NuStep instead of leaving our core product to create a whole line of "me too" products.

RM: Who are the targeted users and purchasers of NuStep's products?

We are focused in the health care and senior living markets along with the consumer market. We originally focused on the cardiac and pulmonary rehabilitation market and have expanded to physical therapy and the varied sections of PT along with continuing care retirement communities, including independent living, assisted living, skilled nursing and memory care communities, and wellness centers. We manufacture and sell the product line direct from Ann Arbor, which allows us to communicate directly with our customers and prospects. We are excited about our growing consumer market since it is a strong indication that individuals are taking responsibility for improving their health.

RM: How have current trends in rehabilitation reimbursements affected your business?

Sarns: As the NuStep is being used, on average, 6 to 8 hours per day in clinical settings and is qualified for therapeutic activity and therapeutic exercise billings, a clinic can pay for the NuStep within a few weeks of purchase and would thereafter earn a positive return on investment.

RM: Where do you see your company in the future?

Sarns: We see NuStep Inc expanding our leadership position in the active living market by creating innovative products that exceed our customers' needs and expectations.

—Rogena Schuyler Silverman