Manifesto: The Path to Choice
(During our first round of qualitative research to understand our user needs, I was deeply moved by the stories our research participants shared around aging. I wrote the following manifesto that ended up serving as a guiding document for the work.)

Aging is a complicated and often scary journey. It can feel both slow and very fast—such as with a sudden injury or illness. In a flash, you’re thrown into a whirlwind of decisions, complications, and realizations that impact you both physically and mentally.

When it comes to the physical side of things, the loss of ability (and especially mobility) = a loss of choice.

And that feels sad and at odds with what old age could/should feel like—a moment where you actually have the time to enjoy life, and do the things you always wished you had the time to do.

Instead, there is less and less choice for what you’re able to do, and where you‘re able to go. This is where assistive devices come into the picture.

Your doctors tell you you need them. Your adult children tell you you need them. You see people in your community and in media needing them. There is an inevitability in needing to use an assistive device that feels more like fate than a series of choices.

People want to maintain their independence, their lifestyle, and their agency. They want a choice in how they live their lives. Ultimately this leads to a huge tension— because wanting to maintain independence means needing to use an assistive device.

But the decision isn’t easy. Assistive devices are ugly. They’re cumbersome. They’re a very real and tangible symbol of looking and feeling old.

We believe Camino can make that decision easier—

Camino is stylish and beautiful. Camino is designed for a variety of people, uses, and scenarios. Camino is a symbol of strength, not frailty. Camino is the first assistive device people will WANT to choose.