KELOWNA, BC – Hybrid Elevators Inc. (HEI) has been awarded ‘Small Business of the Year’ by the Kelowna Chamber of Commerce at their 30th annual Business Excellence Awards. Over 160 local businesses were nominated in 9 different categories. HEI was selected as a winner not only for their history of incredible growth but also for the impressive evolution of their innovative product, timeliness of their unique product and contributions to the local community.
HEI caters mainly to the baby boomer generation as residential builds are now trending towards either being equipped with an elevator during construction or are being built elevator ready. With Canada’s largest sector of the population looking to age-in-place, elevators are now becoming a more common and popular offering in multi-level single family and multi-family developments.
With the addition of an elevator builders are able to better cater to a demographic that controls a significant amount of discretionary spending in Canada. Instead of moving to a senior facility or retirement home people are now starting to equip their homes with features such as elevators, handicap accessible bathrooms and even suites for live-in care givers. Building homes that are sustainable for the long term helps decrease the strain on Canada’s healthcare system.
About Hybrid Elevators Inc.
HEI is proud to be a family owned & operated company located in Kelowna. They specialize in the manufacturer, installation and service of custom residential elevators and wheelchair lifts throughout the province. HEI was conceived due to a personal need. Lance Davidson owns HEI and in 2009 his wife, Patty, was diagnosed with MS. With her mobility beginning to suffer Lance, semi-retired at the time, began researching accessibility options for their 3-story home. He had a difficult time finding a product he felt comfortable installing in his house. Eventually, he discovered a small, local elevator manufacturer with a unique system but it was not achieving its potential in the market. With a background in manufacturing Lance negotiated to purchase the assets of the company and in 2012 Hybrid Elevator Inc. was born. The company has since grown from 5 sales per year to 125 sales per year with this level of growth expected to continue. The company now employs 10 people and occupies a 10,000 sq. ft. manufacturing facility in Kelowna, BC. Lance’s eldest son, Jade, manages the day-to-day operations while his youngest son, Jade, manages the electrical manufacturing component.