How to Find an Ideal Buyer for Your Practice

You put a lot of time and energy into building your practice. As you prepare for the sale of your practice you really need to be confident that you are finding a buyer who can take over and lead the practice in a great new direction. So how do you go about determining whether or not a buyer is a good fit for your particular practice?

Types of Buyers

There are three main types of buyers that you should consider for your practice. The first is inside associates who are already familiar with your practice, your customers and all of the inner workings of what you do. Whether they come to you or you go to them, these tend to be people that you have already worked with and trust to manage things well.

Secondly, there are buyers who are already practicing veterinarians currently working as an associate in a veterinary practice but looking for their chance to own their on practice. These types of buyers tend to be most interested in small independent practices and those that are particularly high profit with multiple doctors already in play.

Finally, there are corporate-type buyers who are looking to add to their existing practice chain by acquiring additional locations and merging their brands.

Reaching Potential Buyers

While it may be obvious how you would go about selling your practice to a current associate, finding outside buyers can be much more complicated. The best practice is to hire a qualified broker who can handle the marketing and outreach effort. If they are already familiar with the veterinary market in your area, they will have a good idea of which buyers are around and looking. They can also guide you through staging your practice for sale so that it will look enticing to those buyers who are active in your area.

Questions to Ask

Before you jump into a sales contract with a buyer, you should make sure that you are asking the right questions. First you want to know about the buyer's experience and expertise in the veterinary field, and whether they will bring that expertise to your practice when they take over. In addition, you'll want to ensure they are in a sound financial situation to take over the practice without causing turmoil and confusion for the customers and employees who have counted on you for so long. Your broker can provide you with more in-depth questions to ask of any buyer that is considering the purchase of your practice and tax considerations for selling your veterinary business.

You don't want your legacy and life's work to be left in the wrong hands. That's why it's important that you start preparing for the sale of your practice early on, and ensure that you are working with a qualified buyer who can protect the integrity of what you built.