From the Horse’s Mouth
Each year one of the largest corporate veterinary practice owners holds a one-day conference exclusively for veterinary practice brokers. At the conference, they discuss, amongst many other things, how their company is different than other corporates, how they value veterinary practices, and trends in corporate buying. It’s an interesting meeting to get the “state of the union” from a corporate buyers’ perspective. I wanted to share with you some of the notes I took and give you my thoughts on a few of their points.
- Corporates are continuing to expand. Not only in the U.S. and Canada, but this corporate buyer has begun acquiring practices in Australia and New Zealand.
- Some corporates have begun to do de novo practices. They are filling the gaps where they don’t have ownership of a practice with a startup practice. If you can’t buy it, build it!
- The DVM retention rate for the industry is 62%. A particular corporate claimed to retain DVMs at a rate of 82.5%. They said it’s due to how they treat the DVM and staff leaving everything as close to the same as possible. They also give the owners a piece of the pie.
- There currently is a shortage of DVM associates. They are putting a heavy effort towards recruiting DVMs at Veterinary Schools as well as the general public.
- This corporate has three commitments – Wellness Plans, Dentistry, and Fear-Free Clinics.
- They expect the current acquisition trend to continue for the next three to five years.
- Valuations are different among the various corporate buyers. Their add-back for DVM salaries is 20%. Another corporate buyer uses 22%. That can make a big difference in the purchase price on a large practice. Another example is adding back an office manager salary. That can vary significantly amongst corporate buyers. These are just two of ten examples of the differences they provided.
- Valuations have gone up over the past 5 years. Five years ago, they were buying practices at 4x to 5x EBITDA. They are now acquiring practices at a broader range of 6x to 9x EBITDA.
- They believe valuations are currently at their high peak with the expectation that they will start tapering back down to the 4x to 5x EBITDA range they saw five years ago.
- General Veterinary Practices that are in the sights of corporate acquisition teams represent 50% of all General Veterinary Practices. Corporates currently own 30% of all of these practices. The expectation is that once total corporate ownership hits 50%, the acquisitions will taper off dramatically. Corporates then may turn to specialty clinics. Note, we’re already seeing this in the marketplace. They also may focus on de novo practices.
In summary, the presentation confirmed what our thoughts have been:
- Corporates are here to stay.
- Corporate ownership will continue to grow.
- There are some good corporate buyers who treat their staff and DVMs well and there are others that do not.
- Corporates will go the de novo route when they can’t find a practice in an area they want to have a concentration.
- Valuations will begin to trend down in the not too distant future.
The number of corporate buyers in the market and the supply of practices corporates want all play into this. Whether good or bad, the corporate veterinary practice is here for the long haul.
This is just meant as an educational document and we are not promoting this or any other corporate buyer.
From the Horse’s Mouth
Each year one of the largest corporate veterinary practice owners holds a one-day conference exclusively for veterinary practice brokers. At the conference, they discuss, amongst many other things, how their company is different than other corporates, how they value veterinary practices, and trends in corporate buying. It’s an interesting meeting to get the “state of the union” from a corporate buyers’ perspective. I wanted to share with you some of the notes I took and give you my thoughts on a few of their points.
- Corporates are continuing to expand. Not only in the U.S. and Canada, but this corporate buyer has begun acquiring practices in Australia and New Zealand.
- Some corporates have begun to do de novo practices. They are filling the gaps where they don’t have ownership of a practice with a startup practice. If you can’t buy it, build it!
- The DVM retention rate for the industry is 62%. A particular corporate claimed to retain DVMs at a rate of 82.5%. They said it’s due to how they treat the DVM and staff leaving everything as close to the same as possible. They also give the owners a piece of the pie.
- There currently is a shortage of DVM associates. They are putting a heavy effort towards recruiting DVMs at Veterinary Schools as well as the general public.
- This corporate has three commitments – Wellness Plans, Dentistry, and Fear-Free Clinics.
- They expect the current acquisition trend to continue for the next three to five years.
- Valuations are different among the various corporate buyers. Their add-back for DVM salaries is 20%. Another corporate buyer uses 22%. That can make a big difference in the purchase price on a large practice. Another example is adding back an office manager salary. That can vary significantly amongst corporate buyers. These are just two of ten examples of the differences they provided.
- Valuations have gone up over the past 5 years. Five years ago, they were buying practices at 4x to 5x EBITDA. They are now acquiring practices at a broader range of 6x to 9x EBITDA.
- They believe valuations are currently at their high peak with the expectation that they will start tapering back down to the 4x to 5x EBITDA range they saw five years ago.
- General Veterinary Practices that are in the sights of corporate acquisition teams represent 50% of all General Veterinary Practices. Corporates currently own 30% of all of these practices. The expectation is that once total corporate ownership hits 50%, the acquisitions will taper off dramatically. Corporates then may turn to specialty clinics. Note, we’re already seeing this in the marketplace. They also may focus on de novo practices.
In summary, the presentation confirmed what our thoughts have been:
- Corporates are here to stay.
- Corporate ownership will continue to grow.
- There are some good corporate buyers who treat their staff and DVMs well and there are others that do not.
- Corporates will go the de novo route when they can’t find a practice in an area they want to have a concentration.
- Valuations will begin to trend down in the not too distant future.
The number of corporate buyers in the market and the supply of practices corporates want all play into this. Whether good or bad, the corporate veterinary practice is here for the long haul.
This is just meant as an educational document and we are not promoting this or any other corporate buyer.
What Owning a Veterinary Practice is Really Like
Owning a veterinary practice can be like drinking water from a fire hose. It completely consumes you physically, emotionally, and intellectually. You not only wear the hat of a veterinarian, but you have to also play the role of human resources, accountant, marketing, public relations, lease negotiator, salesman, supply management, janitor, referee, etc. Whoever believes there is a 40 hour work week as a practice owner has not owned a veterinary practice. Yet, all the public ever sees of you are running in and out of the door telling them their furry friend needs treatment. They don’t see or appreciate your countless hours refereeing staff disputes, negotiating a new lease, fixing broken equipment, or installing a new light. They think you are gone fishing or at your lake house every weekend.
Many of you have recognized the power and need to delegate. You have people you can trust – your knowledgeable service rep now fixes your equipment, a skilled plumber who fixes the leaky sink, and an expert commercial broker who takes care of your lease. By delegating you have freed up your time, reduced your stress and let the experts use their skills to do what they do best.
When it comes time for your veterinary transition, you can try doing it yourself, but that’s like giving the patient a sharp veterinary instrument to spay their own pet. They don’t have the knowledge, experience, or skills to do it right and may end up bleeding in the end. Or, you can entrust your veterinary transition to the people at OMNI Veterinary Practice Group who have the experience, knowledge, and track record to help you achieve your goal giving you peace of mind, freedom, and more happiness.
Reasons to List Your Veterinary Practices for Sale with OMNI Veterinary Practice Group
Whether you are planning for retirement, looking to relocate, or taking your Veterinary career in a new direction, placing your Veterinary practice up for sale is a huge endeavor, one that you should not be do alone. The experts at OMNI Veterinary Practice Group are dedicated to providing their clients with the best possible services to meet their needs, while building a trusting relationship. Here is why you should trust OMNI Veterinary Practice Group when listing Veterinary practices for sale.
Confidentiality is Paramount
At OMNI Veterinary Practice Group, maintaining seller confidentiality is one of their highest priorities. Deciding to list a Veterinary practice for sale a major career move, regardless of the reasons behind it. When confidentiality is breached, the practice risks losing valuable patients and employees who would otherwise have remained during and after the sale, which reduces the overall value of the practice. For this reason, the professional team at OMNI Veterinary Practice Group have dedicated themselves to becoming experts at maintaining complete confidentiality throughout the process, while ensuring high listing exposure.
Marketing Experts
Even the most profitable Veterinary practices for sale can sit on the listing pages indefinitely when marketing efforts are lacking. At OMNI Veterinary Practice Group, this is not an option. The OMNI team of professionals have extensive experience and formal training as marketing experts to ensure the highest exposure for the listing as possible without risking the seller’s confidentiality. Each practice is listed across the nation in over 30 locations, including:
- Universities
- Associations
- Programs
- Social Media Platforms
- Online Marketing Efforts
- Mailers
- And More
To better expose Veterinary practices for sale, OMNI Veterinary Practice Group has built strong lasting relationships within the field. These relationships, which also help in speeding up Veterinary practice transitions, include:
- Vendors
- Bankers
- Attorneys
When you are ready for a career move involving the selling of your current practice, you can trust the experts at OMNI Veterinary Practice Group to maintain your confidentiality, while marketing your practice to a large group of potential buyers. To better assist you in the transition, OMNI Veterinary Practice Group is a leading provider of a wide range of services to Veterinary professionals, which include:
- Practice Sales or Transitions
- Valuations
- Consulting
- Real Estate Service
- Buyer Representation
To learn more about listing your Veterinary practice in the Washington, Oregon, or California areas, please contact the expert team at Omni Veterinary Practice Group. OMNI specializes in Veterinary practice sales, and are dedicated to ensuring your success throughout the entire process.
The Importance of Veterinary Practice Valuations
Common Reasons for Veterinary Practice Valuations
There are several reasons doctors need to know the value of their Veterinary practice. The most common reason is for Veterinary practice transitions or sales. Valuations help to determine if the asking price is reasonable, to figure out a reasonable asking price to begin with, and to ensure the practice is profitable enough to invest in; this is also important to know when considering a merger. Doctors should also get their practice valuated within ten years of retirement and every two years after for estate planning purposes. Therefore, it is important to make sure the valuation is not a cookie cutter process.
Rule of Thumb Should Not Apply
No two Veterinary practices are the same, so no two valuations should be the same. Often veterinary practice valuation are conducted using a rule of thumb method. The method does a major disservice to both the seller and the buyer, as it often does not highlight the practice’s uniqueness and how that influences the actual value of the practice in question. For a true valuation, many aspects of the practice must be taken into account and evaluated by experts with extensive formal training and resulting certifications, such as the experts at OMNI Veterinary Practice Group.
Experience Matters
When looking into Veterinary practice valuations, it is important to make sure the professionals have extensive experience performing said valuations. The team at Omni Veterinary Practice Group; example, have helped hundreds of doctors buy and sell their practices using accurate valuations based on the practice itself and are considered Veterinary industry experts in practice valuations. As members of the Institute of Business Appraisers and the Practice Valuation Study Club, OMNI Veterinary Practice Group offers accurate and individualized valuations for Veterinary practices in Washington, Oregon, and California.
To learn more about why and how Veterinary practice valuations are conducted, or to request a free consultation in the Washington, Oregon, or California areas, please contact the expert staff at OMNI Veterinary Practice Group. OMNI’s team of experts are dedicated to ensuring each client’s success through transitions, valuations, consulting and other real estate services in the Veterinary field.