Ackerman Group vs. Selling Alone
The Difference Between Guidance — and Doing It Alone
Selling your own veterinary practice can seem straightforward — until you realize how many advantages sophisticated buyers bring to the table. Ackerman Group levels that playing field. We prepare owners with the same structure, data, and negotiation leverage that corporate buyers use internally every day.
How Our Process Compares
Below are the essential stages of a successful veterinary practice sale—showing how Ackerman Group’s disciplined approach differs from the rest of the field. (Each section expands for deeper insight.)
Stage
Ackerman Group Approach
Do-It-Yourself Approach
Preparation
& Valuation
What we do:
- Conduct a complete financial normalization
- Identify all discretionary adjustments
- Establish a defensible baseline value before any buyer conversations
+ Why It's Important
Sellers must rely on buyers' versions of “adjusted earnings,” often accepting numbers that undervalue the practice.
Market Access
& Competition
What we do:
- Bring your opportunity to every qualified buyer to generate competitive tension. Buyers may include:
- Corporate groups
- Private equity investors
+ Why It's Important
Sellers talk to one or two buyers directly, giving those buyers control of timing, perception, and price throughout the process.
Negotiation
& Offer Structure
What we do:
- Manage all communication with bidders
- Coordinate attorney input and ensures the economics, structure, and post-sale terms align with your goals
+ Why It's Important
Sellers negotiate alone (if at all) against professionals who do this for a living — often conceding structure, taxes, or terms without realizing it.
Legal Guidance
& Documentation
What we do:
- Work directly with veterinary-specific transaction counsel to streamline review and align the deal’s legal and financial language
+ Why It's Important
Sellers frequently hire a general business attorney unfamiliar with veterinary M&A norms, leading to confusion, delays, and/or costly mistakes.
Due Diligence
Management
What we do:
- Coordinate diligence across financial, HR, and real estate tracks, liaising between buyer and seller to maintain efficiency and focus
+ Why It's Important
Sellers handle buyer requests personally, consuming valuable time and often revealing unnecessary detail or inconsistencies.
Real Estate
& Facility Negotiation
What we do:
- Negotiate lease or sale terms directly with buyers, ensuring rent, term, renewal options, and other responsibilities align with market and lender expectations
+ Why It's Important
Sellers leave lease terms to chance or negotiate directly with the buyer’s real-estate team, often giving up leverage.
Post-Closing Support
What we do:
- Remain involved after closing to assist with employment agreements, production issues, earn-outs, or topco equity events
+ Why It's Important
Sellers have no advocate once the deal closes — left to navigate new employment or ownership structures alone.
Why It Matters
A sale is never just about getting to closing — it’s about securing the right outcome. Corporate buyers have full-time teams for valuation, diligence, and negotiation. Without an advisor, owners face professionals trained to minimize price, limit competition, and control information. Ackerman Group brings balance, structure, and experience to protect the value you’ve built. Selling a veterinary practice is more than a transaction—it’s the culmination of a career. The difference between brokers isn’t in the paperwork; it’s in preparation, access, and advocacy. Ackerman Group’s depth of data, relationships, and real-time market insight make the process smoother, more transparent, and ultimately more rewarding for the veterinarians we serve.
Next Steps
Discover how our process works.
Schedule a confidential consultation or request a complimentary valuation to see where your practice stands.
Every buyer calculates EBITDA differently. We ensure your data tells the full story — normalizing for owner benefits, staffing gaps, and one-time costs — so every buyer bids from the same, accurate foundation.
Buyer development teams are skilled at isolating unrepresented sellers. Without competition, they can use recency bias and selective communication to minimize bids. Our broad process creates a transparent market where your value speaks for itself.
We don’t just negotiate price. We protect rollover equity, earn-outs, employment packages, and tax positioning — variables that define real outcomes, not just headlines.
Veterinary transactions have unique issues — restrictive covenants, production bonuses, deferred compensation. We know which specialists to involve, when, and why.
Our team manages hundreds of diligence processes each year. We anticipate buyer needs, control document flow, and protect your bandwidth so you can keep running the practice.
Real-estate terms can add or subtract six figures from total deal value. We make sure every lease and purchase agreement supports — not undermines — your sale.
The months after closing are where many “DIY” sellers realize what they didn’t know. We continue advising through transitions, ensuring your deal works long after it’s done.
