One Year Later

Carmen Gonzalez has faced challenges she would never have imagined her first year owning Hometown Medical Supply in Lehigh Acres. A former nurse of 25 years who opened the business at 516 Joel Blvd., she's had many trying moments and frustrations between insurance-company stipulations and a tight cash flow. "At one point my husband said, 'Just walk away from it,' because he was tired of seeing me stressed," she says. "But I said, 'No, I'm not going to give up.'"

Over the years, she had saved money to launch the store, but it went fast. She recently cashed in her retirement fund to keep the business afloat. "I didn't want to let go of this. This is my dream," she says.

As a nurse-and someone who couldn't find a medical-supply store in town when she was struggling with rheumatoid arthritis-Gonzalez saw the need in the growing community and was convinced Lehigh was the place for such a business. Hometown Medical Supply sells a wide array of medical equipment, including walkers, wheelchairs, hospital beds, scooters and crutches. Many people in need of such supplies count on their medical insurance to pay for them, but Gonzalez learned that insurance companies frequently contract with major medical-supply companies as network providers, and won't pay for supplies from mom-and-pop shops like hers.

Another major hurdle she had to overcome in her first year of business was getting Medicare reimbursements. She applied shortly after opening her store to become a Medicare-approved provider, only to learn that there was a freeze on sanctioning new providers in the wake of a fraud case in Texas. She eventually got approved, but it took nearly eight months. "It was awful," she says.

Gonzalez says contacts she established in nursing have helped market her business.

In retrospect, she would have saved more money before opening up shop. "Money is a big issue when you are starting a business, and I learned that the hard way," she says. She has tried unsuccessfully to get a business loan from a minority or small-business program to finance her store. Still, Gonzalez has confidence. "A lot of people here in this area appreciate that I'm here," she says.