Body Scientific has been an international business since its conception. Founders Marcelo and Lik imagined a medical illustration and design company that had no borders. Marcelo, owner of BSI, brought his curiosity for international business to Body Scientific and medicine is a global market that lended itself perfectly. Prior to starting BSI, Marcelo traveled to Düsseldorff, Germany in 1999 to attend Medica. He saw the incredible opportunity and need within this international market and the rest followed. Today, Body Scientific boasts an international network in the USA, UAE, EU, UK, China, Taiwan, and Brazil and has attended dozens of international trade shows.
So when the world came to a halt in March of 2020, international travel and business looked much different for the BSI team.
Tradeshows and international travel stopped. The team attended a couple of online shows, but the virtual landscape did not feel very productive. This limited opportunities for networking and collaboration.
Production and delivery times suddenly increased. This was largely due to the breakdown of the global supply chain, though we faced other challenges as well. Marcelo was unable to personally oversee production in Asia which would typically streamline communication, quality review and overall production. The collective result was production times up to quadruple that of previous years. This was certainly a difficult time for us all.
When the opportunity came about to attend Medica 2021 came about, we were excited to physically return to international travel! The Medica team and German policies took all necessary measures to ensure the safety of the attendees. There were half the amount of vendors and about 30-40% the amount of attendees as compared to previous years. Though at a reduced attendance, those who chose to come were quality attendees and allowed for social distancing to be maintained. Everyone was required to wear masks and present a negative PCR test or proof of vaccination. Thanks to these precautions, Marcelo, Carol and Monica could attend Medica safely.
At our booth, we showcased our new model for Oyster Point Pharma: a clear face model showing the connection of nerves from nose to eye. This model was designed as a tool for pharmaceutical reps to educate physicians about their product.
(Image description: Oyster face model in Virtual Reality)
We also demonstrated our QR Anatomy and AR Anatomy technology. Our QR Anatomy technology pulls up additional information and labels for physical anatomical models on any device. In contrast, AR anatomy injects virtual anatomy into the real world on a personal device. These educational materials make for a fun and interactive learning experience for students and patients alike.
(Image Description: Carol poses in the app view of our AR anatomy demonstration)
And of course, we took time to explore and have a little fun!
(Image description: Monica, Marcelo and Carol pose with their mugs at the Düsseldorf Kris Kringle Market)
