His business model is doing the most good
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- Date: Wed, 24 Oct 2007 12:27:56 -0400
Indianapolis Star, IN, USA
Wednesday, October 24, 2007
His business model is doing the most good
By RoNeisha Mullen, Star correspondent
Caption: Giving back: Eric Dailey Sr. (right), owner of Cotton Medical Group,
shows a pain-management pump to Dr. Jon McCreary. Dailey's company contracts
services from Bosma Enterprises, which provides jobs for the visually impaired.
- Steve Healey / The Star
Eric Dailey Sr. has always been passionate about helping others.
Growing up with a father and a grandfather who were pastors, he was introduced
at an early age to the concept of giving back.
"There is a responsibility to help others, and if you have the opportunity to
make it your business to help others . . . then that's a blessing," Dailey said.
The Fishers resident and Marine Corps veteran has combined his entrepreneurial
spirit, military- instilled work ethic and work-force experience to start his
own company, Cotton Medical Group.
The marketer and distributor of minimally invasive surgical and medical
supplies has even found a way to implement his "give-back" philosophy through
his business.
Dailey's latest efforts are seeing fruition in the form of a partnership with
Bosma Enterprises, a Northwestside Indianapolis nonprofit that provides
employment and rehabilitation services for the visually impaired.
Dailey has contracted services from Bosma employees to help warehouse and
distribute the medical and surgical products that his company sells.
Sandy Herman, vice president of sales and marketing at Bosma, said the
partnership is a win-win for both companies.
"We appreciate that he's looking out for us and allowing us to provide
employment opportunities," Herman said. "At the same time, he needs
infrastructure. He's not at the point where he can go out and build a
50,000-square-foot warehouse. We have that."
Herman said the alliance with Cotton Medical supports what Bosma stands for.
"Our mission is to make the world a better place for people who are blind or
visually impaired," she said. "And here you have this guy who's had a stellar
career in the military, a stellar career in pharmaceutical sales. Now he's
ready to take those talents and build his own company, but the first thing he
wants to do is give back to the community.
"We really think of Eric as a hero."
Dailey his been giving back to his country for almost 25 years. He enlisted in
the Marines immediately after graduating from high school in 1982 and spent 16
years on active duty. For the past nine years, he has been a reservist.
"I'm from a family that serves," Dailey said. "My father, Floyd Dailey Sr., was
awarded a Bronze Star in Korea, and my nephew, Floyd Dailey III, received the
Bronze Star in Iraq."
Later this year, Dailey's nephew will return to Iraq for his third tour.
"He's my hero," he said.
After Dailey's active-duty service, he spent seven years selling pharmaceutical
and surgical products for Merck & Co. and Boston Scientific -- which helped
prepare him for the rigors of running his own business.
Since its launch in February, Cotton Medical has "grown very quickly," Dailey
said.
What started as a two-man band -- just the founder and a sales representative
-- is now a small orchestra of five full-time employees with a growing list of
clients, including Clarian Health Partners, Dearborn County Hospital, Achilles
Podiatry Group and Veterans Affairs hospitals across the country.
Dailey said cold calls, physicians' referrals and sales presentations
contributed to his company's growth. He declined to release sales figures.
Dr. Jon McCreary of the Achilles Podiatry Group is a customer of Dailey's and
uses the SmartInfuser PainPump, a disposable pain- management system that
provides a steady drip of anesthesia to patients recovering from major surgery
-- thereby reducing the need for narcotic medicines.
McCreary said he has used a similar product in the past but preferred doing
business with a local distributor.
"I don't know where the other products I use come from. They were what was
available at the place I was doing surgery."
McCreary said he has used only a few of the SmartInfuser pumps so far, but
plans to continue using them whenever possible.
"I'm pretty pleased with the overall experience," he said. "My patients are
also pleased."
While things are looking good for Cotton Medical, Dailey said that hasn't
always been so.
"I've had some wins, losses . . . but they have brought me to this station in
my life with humility and a strong appreciation for work ethic," Dailey said.
"Looking at Bill Cook (founder of Bloomington- based Cook Group), his story is
amazing. If I can be one one- hundredth as successful while helping others, I'd
be pretty happy."
Although he considers himself the "new kid on the block," Dailey has come up
with some long-term plans.
"What we do affects the community," Dailey said. "My company will be able to
help Bosma achieve its goal of helping veterans and others."
Dailey said he's particularly passionate about helping veterans because he
knows personally about the sacrifices they have made.
And helping others is something he says he will always strive to do.
Eric Dailey Sr.
Who: Founder of Cotton Medical Group, an Indianapolis-based marketer and
distributor of surgical and medical supplies.
Military service: Major, U.S. Marine Corps; service includes 16 years on
active duty (1982-98).
Education: Bachelor's degree in psychology, Illinois State University;
master's degree in management, Webster University.
Family: Wife, Leslie. They have four children: Krystal, Lauren, Lindsey and
Eric Jr.
Favorite quote: (From Hebrews 11:1) "Faith is the substance of things hoped
for and the evidence of things not seen."
http://www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071024/BUSINESS/710240429/-1/LOCAL17
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