BIG IndeaBounce 2022 finalist

Team Name: Resense

Concept: The Memory Box is a toolkit designed to bring comfort and joy to those living with Alzheimer’s and Dementia.

Challenge: Nationwide, more than 6 million Americans are living with Alzeihmers or dementia which has increased by 16% simply during the COVID-19 pandemic. Each one of these individuals are slowly losing treasured memories, senses, and key skills necessary for independence. A tremendous amount of these individuals’ care are being provided by family and loved ones, leading to 11 million Americans providing unpaid care for an individual with dementia and 15.3 billion hours of unpaid care annually. These individuals end up in cyclical patterns day after day and finding activities for these individuals can be stressful for their caregivers. This is a problem we hope to solve. We have created a product that provides activities for these individuals while also improving brain health, exercising their senses, and creating long-lasting memories.

Solution: Our solution is the Memory Box. The Memory Box is a toolkit that helps lessen the symptoms of dementia while also increasing the strengths they currently have. The box includes multiple different items and activities that are targeted to exercise and strengthen specific senses that are lost as the disease progresses. This will increase the retention of memory, while also delaying the loss of their senses and memory. Included are tactile activities for the purpose of maintaining dexterity, but the repetitive actions also soothe and calm the individual. Adult coloring books are included. Their meditative quality distracts and decreases agitation for the individual while also aiding in information retention. Products that utilize essential oils (lotions and balms) are included to provide sensory stimulation. We are focusing on scents such as Rosemary due to its ability to enhance the sense of smell and aid in memory recall and future-oriented tasks. We also include logical games and puzzles to exercise the mind, logical reasoning, and memory. Finally, we are utilizing music therapy tools that have been proven to be effective in stimulating memory and well-being. Our box will also be used as a way to entertain the individual and provide an activity that they can do with loved ones to create new long-lasting memories!

Market: Our target market is individuals living with dementia. As stated previously, in America (2021) there are 6 million individuals currently living with Alzheimer’s and Dementia. This number has increased by 16% during the Covid 19 Pandemic and is continually increasing. Our target customer, however, is slightly different. Our target customers are the caregivers and care facilities that provide care for these individuals living with dementia. The facilities will utilize our product as a transitory device between home and care, while also providing a measurable tool to help chart each patient’s mental degradation as the disease progresses. Pennsylvania (where we are founded) ranks 4th among all states in the percentage of 65 and older and 85 and older age groups in the US. An estimated 70% of these individuals will require long-term nursing and care. Thus, there are approximately around 700 nursing homes in PA alone, with an average of 91% occupancy. There are also 1,200 licensed personal care and assisted living facilities. As these generations age and more individuals need care these numbers are destined to increase, providing us with a very large and steady target customer market.

Competition: Through research, we have realized that our product is a pretty novel idea in this market. We have found 2 similar companies that provide individual products that are targeted towards dementia. One also provides subscription boxes, however, they are focused on games for these individuals. Our box targets all the senses provides activities for the individuals and includes multiple products which clearly differentiates our product from the others. Our product is also targeted towards facilities caring for individuals with dementia which is completely unique in this market.

Value Creation: With our product, our current Cost of Goods Sold is estimated at around $13.25 for each box and we are planning on selling these boxes wholesale to facilities for $32 each. We will receive $18.5 in profit for each box and that is around a 40% profit margin. We also hope to reach 10% of our target customer market within the 2 years which would mean we are partnered with around 70 nursing homes and care facilities in PA. We have a great potential to increase our numbers and profitability by increasing the number of boxes shipped to these facilities each month and increasing the number of partnered facilities as well.

Team: Our team consists of Luke Gilligan and Ethan David. We are both sophomores attending Grove City College. Luke Gilligan is an Entrepreneurship Major and has great experience in start-ups and company generation. He also has worked in a nursing home during High School. Ethan David is an Entrepreneurship Major and Biblical and Religious Studies major and has experience in business consulting. While we both are young we have completed over 50 interviews of mental health professionals specializing in Dementia and Memory Loss diseases, as well as those affected by dementia and their family. We also plan on utilizing an advisory board consisting of psychologists, business leaders, and others necessary for successful product development.

VOTE FOR TEAM RESENSE HERE