WILLIAMSBURG — Josh Miner graduated from William & Mary last year and now the young entrepreneur is launching a product he designed and created.
Voyage LLC, the company Miner started with his best friend and fellow W&M graduate Spenser Bagdoyan, created the Archetype Knee Brace.
“Four or five years ago, my mom slipped on a curb, landing on both her knees, and ended up completely eviscerating them. Since then, I have been watching her go to doctors, physical therapy, trying other knee braces and being told there is not much more they can do — with the general census being that she should enjoy the couch more,” explained Miner.
With concern for his mother being the driving factor, Miner said, “Me, being an arrogant 23-year-old, thought, ‘well no one else has been able to fix this but maybe I can.'”
That drive set in motion a plan to find something that would better assist his mom in her desire to keep moving, free of pain, and continue to enjoy her active lifestyle.
“By some miracle, I got a fellowship with one of my professors.” Miner continued, “I spent 10 weeks interviewing patients (with knee issues) to better understand all the pain points and what was missing from all the existing braces and talking to doctors about their perspectives — I am not a doctor so, the next best thing was to talk to a bunch of doctors about what they would want.”
Using his research, Miner fabricated about 30 iterations of the brace by hand in his apartment at the college, taking in the feedback he received from the people that tested them, before he felt confident enough to see how his number one consumer — his mom — would react.
“After a year and a half, you hope for the best, but you are cautiously optimistic,” said Miner about his mother’s experience finally trying on the brace and finding she could climb stairs with ease.
Explaining the difference in the Archetype knee brace, Miner explained, “Every brace currently on the market acts as a cast. It hugs the leg, but does not really provide much support — it mostly locks it in. Where as this brace is more like a pair of crutches you walk on — fundamentally relieving the force off the leg.”
The Archetype knee brace, as stated on the webpage, is the first of its kind to mimic the natural function of the knee and is now available through an online Kickstarter campaign. Miner hopes, if minimum sales are reached, to begin shipping the braces out to customer by the end of January.
“This really and truly was born out of the love for Williamsburg, W&M and of course, my mom,” stated Miner. “I put my blood, sweat and tears into trying to make as high-quality product as I can, at an affordable price just to give back in any sort of way. I know so many people have told me this could be life-changing for them if they could get back to doing the things they love.”
To learn more, visit the Archetype Knee Brace webpage.
