The Ackerman Process
Our proven veterinary practice sales process puts you first.
Considering when and how to sell your practice can seem overwhelming and daunting. On top of it all, selling your practice is the most important financial transaction of your lifetime — every option opens more questions and every possibility requires more decisions.
With Ackerman Group, we take the guesswork and heavy-lifting off your shoulders. Our confidential, comprehensive, and trusted approach to veterinary practice transitions accounts for every detail and intricacy in the sales process. We want you to remain involved and at the center of our partnership, so we strive to simplify the complexities and equip you with the knowledge you need to make the best decisions for your future.
The key to securing you a personalized, high-value deal lies in painting a strong picture of your practice to potential buyers. We start with document and data collection to gain a deep understanding of your goals, the current state of your practice, and your practice’s financials. We’ll provide in-depth consultations to help you identify, plan, and prepare your practice to enter the corporate market. Finally, Ackerman Group works with you to evaluate your offers, negotiate terms, and close successfully.
01.Sign the Engagement Letter
The Engagement Letter outlines the partnership between you and Ackerman Group. The transition process will kick off once you sign this agreement. Confidentiality is paramount at Ackerman Group: your data and our dialogues will remain private, secure, and confidential throughout the engagement.
02.Assess & Evaluate Your Practice
2 to 5 Weeks
Every practice is different and requires a dedicated analysis to pull information necessary to buyers. Our team will conduct a thorough financial evaluation of your practice, including an analysis to benchmark your business’s valuation. After the evaluation, we’ll build a confidential executive summary for potential buyers. This summary highlights the qualitative and quantitative attributes of your practice, together with your personal and professional goals.
02.Assess & Evaluate Your Practice
2 to 5 Weeks
Every practice is different and requires a dedicated analysis to pull information necessary to buyers. Our team will conduct a thorough financial evaluation of your practice, including an analysis to benchmark your business’s valuation. After the evaluation, we’ll build a confidential executive summary for potential buyers. This summary highlights the qualitative and quantitative attributes of your practice, together with your personal and professional goals.
03.Identify Potential Buyers
1 to 1.5 Months
We’ll go to market with your practice in a confidential manner. You’ll have the chance to meet and get to know potential buyers: tell your story, learn more about them, and consider what your practice would look like if they were sold ownership. We’ll gather proposals (Letters of Intent) from interested buyers on your behalf.
04.Negotiate & Sign A Letter of Intent
2 to 4 Weeks
Upon receiving proposals, we will review the Letters of Intent (LOIs) together. Our team will negotiate terms with buyers on your behalf. Our goal in negotiating is to achieve the best deal that aligns with your personal terms, price point, and your practice’s culture for the right “fit”.
04.Negotiate & Sign A Letter of Intent
2 to 4 Weeks
Upon receiving proposals, we will review the Letters of Intent (LOIs) together. Our team will negotiate terms with buyers on your behalf. Our goal in negotiating is to achieve the best deal that aligns with your personal terms, price point, and your practice’s culture for the right “fit”.
05.LOI to Close: Due Diligence & Legal Documents
2 to 2.5 Months
The last steps in the process can be the most time-consuming, but are crucial to finalize the details and tie your deal together. We’ll provide more practice data, negotiate final due diligence of legal documents, and complete closing documentation.
06.LOI to Close: Transition Planning
1 Month
Finally, Ackerman Group will help you evaluate tax mitigation strategies, transition planning, real estate sale/lease negotiations, joint venture/private equity options, and more as the sale reaches closing and ownership is transferred.
06.LOI to Close: Transition Planning
1 Month
Finally, Ackerman Group will help you evaluate tax mitigation strategies, transition planning, real estate sale/lease negotiations, joint venture/private equity options, and more as the sale reaches closing and ownership is transferred.
Considering selling your veterinary practice? Start here.
We offer options for veterinarians at any stage in the transition process.
Reach us by phone
Schedule a Virtual 1:1
Start the Practice Evaluation
What does Ackerman Group do?
Our team guides veterinarians in corporate practice sales. With quality relationships and deep market expertise, Ackerman Group helps you navigate every aspect of the transition process to successfully sell your practice in the corporate market.
Our team works with you to customize a transition plan that advances your professional and personal goals. We design a plan to secure your personal terms, find the best cultural fit for your practice, and negotiate the best price. Ackerman Group has helped over 200 practice owners successfully sell on their own terms.
Why should I partner with Ackerman Group to sell my practice?
Our breadth and depth of experience in all aspects of veterinary practice sales is unmatched: From negotiating employment agreements and exit strategies, to analyzing private equity offers and tax mitigation techniques, we know the market trends, the buyers, and how you can carve out the future you want.
We’ve brokered more practices to corporate groups than anyone else in the veterinary profession. With more than 200 deals facilitated since 2017, and over $1B in combined value of practices brokered by Ackerman since 2020, we are the preferred practice sales broker among veterinarians.
Why does Ackerman Group only sell practices to the corporate market?
The corporate consolidation of the veterinary industry is expected to continue for several years as high-quality practices are available and in high-demand. Corporations are looking for well-run, profitable practices that will fit into the business culture and brand they are building nationwide. It’s due to the quality of veterinary practices we represent that corporations rely on Ackerman Group to help them find the right practices to grow their companies.
While today’s corporate market is exciting, it’s equally complex. At Ackerman Group, we enjoy specializing in the corporate space and are attuned to its market changes, the specific buyers and their strategies, and the intricacies of the transaction process.
What is the Ackerman Process and how does it work?
The Ackerman Process is the proprietary approach we use to help you successfully sell your practice to the corporate market. It’s a comprehensive process and methodology we’ve followed for years that’s proven to help you secure the best price, best terms, and best fit for your veterinary practice.
We start with document and data collection to gain a deep understanding of your goals, the current state of your practice, and your practice’s financials. We’ll provide in-depth consultations to help you identify, plan, and prepare your practice to enter the corporate market. Finally, Ackerman Group works with you to evaluate your offers, negotiate terms, and close successfully. You can read about the Ackerman Process and its steps in more detail here.
I’m interested in working with Ackerman Group to sell my practice. What next?
Whether you’re set on selling your practice, or the idea is a brief passing thought, we have options for veterinarians at any stage.
Book a time to chat with Ackerman Group. We offer 30-minute and 60-minute consultations for any purpose: answering your questions, providing advice, or sharing more about what we do.
Schedule a Virtual 1:1
Want to see what your practice is worth? Start our Practice eValuation process, where you can see a “snapshot” of your practice’s profitability in the corporate market.
Start the Practice eValuation
Other inquiries? Call us at 804-382-5160 or send us a note at [email protected] and we’d be happy to help.
Dr. Gary Ackerman
Founder & Co-CEO
Gary earned his Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine from the University of Georgia before establishing his own multi-doctor, multi-site practice in Virginia. After growing his veterinary practices for 20 years, he sold them to a corporate buyer in 2001, where he experienced the transition process firsthand.
Throughout his career, Gary gained a wealth of knowledge and experience across many different areas that position him as an industry leader in the veterinary world today. In addition to being a DVM and former veterinary practice owner, he is also a licensed commercial real estate agent and investment advisor. His areas of expertise include (but are not limited to): corporate consolidation, veterinary practice ownership, business growth and management, real estate transactions and construction planning, tax mitigation strategies, practice transitions, due diligence, practice valuations, and negotiations.
Gary is a regular speaker at veterinary conferences and events, and he is an approved CE teacher for numerous realtor, accounting, and legal firms. He is published across multiple trade magazines and management publications where he writes about real estate issues in healthcare as well as practice transitions.
Gary lives in Richmond, Virginia with his wife Brenda. He has two children in college. When time permits, he enjoys water sports and an occasional game of racquetball.
The Comprehensive, Proven Ackerman Process.
Our methodology is developed to help you navigate every aspect of the transition process with ease and control, while we handle the heavy lifting and minute details.
From negotiating employment agreements and exit strategies, to analyzing private equity offers and tax mitigation techniques, we know the market trends, the buyers, and how you can carve out the future you want.
Every practice is different, and every plan is personalized. The Ackerman Process can last up to seven months and leaves no stone unturned. We plan, identify, negotiate, and close while educating and preparing you to sell throughout the partnership.