

| Are you aware that people with disabilities are a multi-billion dollar market in North America? |

| Contact Brad Johnston for more information about how you can increase your business, email johnston@sterlingfrazer.com |

| Bridging Business and Consumers |
| In Canada, the average life expectancy at birth is 78.3 years. Of that, 68.6 years will be "disability free". For men, the average life expectancy is 75.4 years with 66.9 years disability free. Women have a life expectancy of 81.2 years, and 70.2 years expected to be disability free. |
| One million persons aged 15 and over report having a hearing-related disability |
| Mobility problems are the type of disability most often reported by adults aged 15 and over. In 2001, nearly 2.5 million or 10.5% of Canadians had difficulty walking, climbing stairs, carrying an object for a short distance, standing in line for 20 minutes or moving about from one room to another. |
| In the United States, there were 77 million Americans born between 1946 and 1964 -- a market worth noting! The needs of the senior population have changed; as a group they are more mobile, more active and demand more from mobility products than ever before, and those expectations may carry over into future generations as their children and grandchildren witness the impact a mobility product such as a scooter can have on quality of life. -- Homecare Magazine -- April 2004 |
| Accessibility is not simply putting in a ramp at the front entrance of your building and adding an automated door. Accessibility means making the entire experience open and available to everyone. Accessibility issues are just as important to the elderly, the young, people with temporary disabilities, foreign travellers as well as those with life-long disabilities. Accessibility is making sure your staff is aware of the needs of people with disabilities. This starts with how they are greeted when they enter your establishment. It includes whether assistance is offered to perform specific actions, such as carrying a person's bag, or offering to reach items that are stored either too high or too low. Accessibility is ensuring that a person is heard or can hear a conversation -- as in the case of a person who is deaf, or someone trying to carry on a conversation in a crowded room. Accessibility is the ability for a person to read signage regardless of whether they are dyslexic, blind, have low vision, or do not speak or read English -- such as a young child, or a foreign visitor. |