There is no “right” or “wrong” way to sell your veterinary practice, but having a clear process certainly helps to keep you organized and able to manage suitors. At Ackerman Group, through many years of brokering practices, we’ve built a tried-and-true approach to selling veterinary clinics. While every practice is different, our thoughtful, intentional process is designed to bring successful outcomes time and again.
Our Veterinary Practice Sale Process, Step-By-Step
- Sign the Ackerman Group Engagement Letter. The Engagement Letter essentially outlines the partnership, fee structure, and keys terms between you and Ackerman Group. Once you sign this agreement, the transition process kicks off!
- Initial Data Collection. Our team requests certain financial and operational information that allows us to determine your Trailing Twelve Months (TTM) normalized EBITDA. This figure is a key measure that buyers use to assess your practice’s value. The data we collect here also includes the elements that prospective buyers want to see.
- Normalized EBITDA. With the data collected, our experienced financial analysts complete the normalized EBITDA analysis and we’ll present the results to the seller, answer any questions, and get your buy-in on the numbers. This analysis is critical to ensure all buyers are working from the same set of numbers as they value the practice.
- Marketing Package. Through our conversations about your practice as well as our market knowledge, our team creates a concise and thoughtful marketing package for buyers. This ‘package’ highlights the upside opportunities and the ‘story’ of your practice in a way that buyers will clearly understand and be receptive to.
- “Go-to-Market” and Meeting Buyers. With the Normalized EBITDA analysis and Marketing package complete, we notify the universe of prospective buyers that your practice is looking for a buyer/partner. There’s a four to six-week period dedicated to video calls and meetings with potential buyers. In these meetings, you’ll learn about their organizations and you’ll get to tell your story. Getting to know potential buyers and giving them a chance to assess your fit with their organizations is a huge part of the puzzle here—you want to make sure you’re a good match for each other.
- Letters of Intent (LOIs). As the name implies, buyers send in proposals, or Letters of Intent, that express their interest in and intent to purchase your practice. At Ackerman Group, we comb through and evaluate the LOIs together.
- Negotiations and Signing the LOI. After one to three weeks of negotiating terms and further evaluating potential buyers (calling references, etc.), you’ll sign the LOI. The signed LOI indicates that you’ll negotiate with only one buyer to reach a closing.
- Due Diligence and Legal Documentation. Eight to 14 weeks are spent providing more practice data to the buyer and negotiating detailed legal documents with attorneys. We also integrate with your CPA and financial advisor for any specific business, personal, or tax needs in these areas.
- Transition Planning. In the last three to four weeks before closing, we recommend communicating with your staff and Associates about the sale and what they can expect. The seller and buyer typically announce the deal to staff at this point to allow time for transition planning prior to the close.
- Closing. Money and ownership are officially transferred!
Your Veterinary Practice Sale: Typical Sale Process Timing
The transition process can take anywhere from five to seven months once the Engagement Agreement is signed.
The typical bottlenecks we see on both sides include delays in gathering data from you (so we can perform the normalized EBITDA analysis), and when buyers are backlogged with sales (where their legal or integration teams are stretched thin). Regardless, our goal is always to make the process as educational and seamless as possible for you, while handling all the complexities, bottlenecks, and negotiations on your behalf.
More Buyers, More Terms, More Room for Practice Sale Complications
With an increasing number of veterinary practice buyers entering the space (now more than 30!), there’s more complexities and differentiated terms to navigate. We recommend working with a veterinary practice broker who’s experienced and familiar with the nuances of both the industry and the process itself.
Many clients opt to receive our complimentary, confidential practice valuation before signing the Engagement Letter. To get started with your free practice valuation, click here.