Optometrists cover a wide demographic. Some want to marry, have children, and live in a nice house. Others enjoy the fast-paced environment of a bigger city where they can work by day and play by night. Although dreams and aspirations may be different, we all have one thing we have in common: the desire to control our destiny. We want to be able to choose our workload, choose our pay scale, choose our mode of practice (medical model or traditional refractive practice) and choose when we will work. Controlling our destiny starts with making calculated decisions from the beginning. Considering the framework of today’s optometry practice, starting your own practice compared to buying an existing practice or buying into a practice, can change the course of your destiny.
Starting Cold
Starting a practice cold from the ground up is a great option in the right setting. The key is not being misled by your emotional exuberance to own.
I would not recommend starting a practice cold in a large city UNLESS your demographic research strongly supports a practice in a given area.
I would recommend starting a practice in a smaller town of less than 40,000 people IF you have previous connections in that town.
If your potential practice does not meet one of those two criteria, you may end up staying in the cold.
Buying a Practice
Even though some people have personality conflicts or other bad experiences joining practices, I still believe partnership or buying an established practice is the best option for a number of reasons. One is it is a lower risk than starting your own, yet has potential for a higher reward.
If you do not play with others well in the sandbox, I would recommend you buy a practice completely and do not join a partnership. This would be similar to the start-up but with a typically lower risk.
1. Established patient base – Patients prefer the more experienced doctor. This is obvious in our practice, we have four doctors (one with 35 years in practice, one with 21 years, one with 11 years, and the last with four years). When you buy a practice former patients will most likely give you a chance to win them over to your care. If you are starting a new practice you are less likely to get the over 50 population because they tend to like a more established doctor.
2. Less up-front cash – Typically it costs less to buy an established practice than start from scratch. You also have room to learn what you like and don’t like with the current equipment and setup before investing money in new technology or the latest office design.
3. Knowledgeable staff– This is a huge advantage because the staff will help keep many of your established patients. They also can help you make a successful transition into ownership. Obviously, staffing comes with its headaches, and an all-new staff might seem like a good idea. I would prefer to start with a system that is already working without me having to give much effort.
4. Established network – the practice that is purchased would already have a network of PCPs, retinology, cataract surgeons, etc. I would look for a practice that is medically oriented and verify these relationships are good and that each of the respective doctors reciprocate with ODs. If this is found you know you will keep patients that are referred out and most likely the practice is receiving referrals in for medical eye care.
Is it possible to be successful in today’s optometry business world by starting cold? Probably, but it’s not likely. If you are looking to reach your destination sooner, look for a practice that meets the criteria above. Also, commit to being a team player. Don’t always expect everything to be done your way. Stay attuned to your dream of choosing the parameters of your profession. The definition of successful optometry today does not have to be a big practice with your name all over it, it can be found in working the business as a team sport.
