Progressive Company Provides New Approach to Customer Relationships
Medical Insight | July 6, 2021
Cartessa Aesthetics (Melville, N.Y.) specializes in sourcing aesthetic devices from leading offshore manufacturers, such as El.En. (including Quanta Systems and DEKA), Zimmer MedizinSysteme, and South Korea-based ShenB and Eunsung Global. Working closely with manufacturing partners, Cartessa identifies, imports, distributes, markets, and supports innovative technologies that yield good economic returns for aesthetic providers.
According to Gabe Lubin, CEO of Cartessa Aesthetics, ”We are brand agnostic and take a consultative approach to our customers. Instead of pushing a device on practitioners, we ask them what they need and then listen to them. Our approach is to find best-in-class solutions based on patient skin types, population, and the physician’s financial appetite. By having access to a lot of different manufacturers worldwide, we can focus on what is best for the end user and their patients.”
As a result, four-year-old Cartessa Aesthetics is growing with no sign of slowing down. ”The beauty of our business plan is that the scalability is very high,” expressed Mr. Lubin. ”We work with both new and existing manufacturers, cultivating new technology that fits today’s market, and what we see as future market needs.”
In April, Cartessa Aesthetics announced closing a $35 million investment by private equity firm Crestline Investors, Inc. (Fort Worth, Texas) to support the company’s rapid expansion. ”We’ve grown over 100% year-over-year. Even in 2020, which was a COVID-bound year, we ended up 50% year-over-year. In 2021, we expect to be up again 100% year-over-year. We try to reinvent the practitioner’s experience when buying an aesthetic laser. Historically, when you buy a piece of equipment, whether or not it’s good, a lot of manufacturers will say, well, if the laser works for you don’t call us. We are trying to reinvent that process where we are 100% focused on setting up practices for success and providing ongoing support,” added Mr. Lubin.
Examples of Cartessa Aesthetics’ product offerings include Motus AX, manufactured by Italy-based DEKA, a laser system for hair removal and treating pigmented lesions, and its companion, Motus AY, which can also address vascular concerns. Others include:
- The VirtueRF RF microneedling platform developed by South Korea’s ShenB;
- Zimmer’s SubZ, which features electric cryo technology; and,
- The Subnovii advanced plasma pen.
PHYSIQ, the newest device in the company’s portfolio, targets muscle and body tissue using a single multifunction system. PHYSIQ’s novel combination of a super luminescent diode matrix and EMS (electrical muscle stimulation) allows the practitioner to offer two modalities in a single treatment. Depending on the treatment area, the practitioner chooses between two to four flat hand pieces that are programmed independently. The procedure takes between 15 to 40 minutes depending on the body area. The average treatment series is five sessions, one every week.
”Physician demand for one device that can perform body shaping and muscle toning is high. Also, PHYSIQ is affordable compared with other products on the market and just as effective, perhaps even more. So far, we’ve placed around 100 units over four months and the response is positive,” noted Mr. Lubin.
”I’m completing a study on the PHYSIQ and the results are just spectacular,” said Kenneth O. Rothaus, M.D., a New York City-based plastic surgeon. ”Until the PHYSIQ came along, patients would be treated using a fat reduction device in one series of treatments, and then get an EMS treatment with another device. For the patients, that approach involved a lot more time and money, where the PHYSIQ does both treatments. I am also impressed by the device’s ability to treat cellulite.”
According to Carey J. Nease, M.D., a facial plastic and cosmetic surgeon in Calhoun, Ga., ”Cartessa excels at identifying and distributing devices, such as PHYSIQ, that provide good results for patients, have a reasonable price point, and low disposable costs. The support staff, sales reps, and training staff offer some of the best customer service and support I’ve ever seen.”
Jordana M. Herschthal, M.D., F.A.A.D., a dermatologist in Boca Raton, Fla., agreed the company’s sales and customer support are second to none. ”They help with device settings, training, best practices, and overall do a good job educating potential buyers. They keep it very focused on how their products will help practitioners succeed. I have acquired some of their multifunction platform systems, which help to decrease my overhead. These systems stand up against their rivals in terms of efficacy, and the price is right.”
As reported by Dr. Rothaus, ”Putting pricing aside, Cartessa is successful at identifying an unmet need in the marketplace and then picking the best device and technology to fill that need. If I’m looking for a device to do some procedure, I take the time to evaluate several of them and speak with a lot of companies. I can now shorten that search because I know Cartessa has already done such due diligence. That way, I’m pretty sure that the devices they choose are better than a lot of the others on the market. Over time, I’ve purchased quite a few devices from Cartessa. I trust them, and I think that’s key.”
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