F
ounded in 1977 by Jerry Friedman, MIP is a global suppli-
er of a large range of reusable textiles used in the health
care industry. The firm was first known under the name
Med-I-Pant and specialized in supporting patients with adult
incontinence by supplying reusable briefs. Today the firm has
substantially expanded its product line to include bed linens,
bath linens, blankets and bedspreads, clothing protectors, in-
continence care garments, patient repositioners, laundry bags,
delivery and ward carts, mattresses and a variety of other prod-
ucts. They have transformed their status as incontinence spe-
cialists to one of providing products, services and solutions to
all stakeholders in the healthcare spectrum, including laundries,
patients, and caregivers. While the Company began operations
in Canada in 1977, it worked hard to expand into the United
States, Europe and Australasia, an effort spearheaded by David
Schreiner, the firm’s current Executive Vice-President of South
American Sales. Mr. Schreiner has recently been instrumental
in the formation of a joint venture in South America.
When MIP’s President, David Arditi, joined the firm in 1998, he
soon observed a shift in the market place from reusable briefs
to ones that were disposable. “Disposables became much more
fashionable than the bulkier reusables. We had to reinvent our-
selves and we expanded into a variety of other products and
became a full service textile supplier rather than just an inconti-
nence specialist,” says Arditi. “Since 1998 we’ve more than tri-
FEBRUARY 2014
H
business elite canada
83
