Who we serve
General Practitioners
Growing GP’s typically attract the highest number of qualified bidders. Of the 1000+ IDSOs, LPS considers less than 100 qualified to bid on LPS clients. Multiple offices are not necessarily required to achieve high values. In 2024, one of LPS’ largest IDSO partnerships was completed for a single office GP practice at over $60 million and 9x EBITDA. In 2025, a few larger GP practices will exceed 10x EBITDA in an LPS advised process.
IDSO Partnership
Doctor Owners Make the Difference
Invisible Dental Support Organization or (IDSO) is a term we coined which describes a type of DSO in which the doctor remains as an owner in either the practice or the parent for years or decades. Doctors continue to lead their practice with their brand, team and strategy, but benefit from the resources of a larger silent partner. Practices are not homogenized, rebranded or micromanaged. Doctors sell 51% to 80% of their practice for cash at today’s long-term capital gains tax rates but have continuing upside value growth via ownership.
What We Do
At LPS, we like to use the analogy of a relationship to explain our process. LPS starts by acting as a “dating consultant” by understanding your values and goals to ensure that we introduce you to qualified prospective “spouses” (IDSO partners). We only want to invest your time and ours on “dates” which will meet your goals for practice operations, your time horizon and growth plans.
LPS only accepts very attractive clients for which we believe we can draw at least five bidders. Creating a bidding contest among multiple suitors is critical to achieving the high practice values for which LPS is acclaimed and why we are by far the largest advisors in the industry.
Notably, in a recent survey of IDSO bidders for LPS clients, IDSO executives stated that LPS clients performed better in the two years after the initial partnership than clients of the little advisors. They have now created their own Advisor Blacklist which lists advisors from which they will no longer consider clients.
Who Do We Serve
While GP practices represent the largest number of IDSO partners by far, the specialists may be the fastest growing and most acquisitive. In the last three years, over 50 specialty-only IDSOs have been formed to partner with larger practices of all specialties.
Why LPS?
Unique, Expert Advisors
LPS is by far the largest transaction advisor to dentists of all specialties because we achieve the highest values for clients. Unlike all others, LPS is not paid by the buyers of our clients and we are paid nothing unless a transaction is completed. This unique allegiance only to our doctor clients enables us to create bidding contests among five or more bidders for your practice. The other guys will only show your practice to the buyers who will also pay them a fee.
Expert Advisors
LPS specializes in advising larger dental practices on monetizing a part of their life’s work in an Invisible Dental Support Organization (IDSO) partnership. LPS has 30+ team members focused only on IDSO partnerships. LPS is by far the largest advisor in the dental industry due to the high values achieved for clients in hundreds of IDSO partnerships since 2016.
Wealth Building
When doctors choose the right IDSO partnership, it can create far more value over time than remaining independent. IDSOs have created billions of dollars in value for their investors and doctors over the last 35 years. Thousands of doctors have experienced gains on their retained ownership of 500% and more over time
Strategic Planning
Since the onset of COVID, thousands of doctors under 50 have chosen IDSO partnerships as a part of their long-term wealth building strategy. Doctors today should have a plan to monetize their practice value long before they approach 60+ as doctors with the longest future careers are most valuable in IDSO Partnerships.
Why Sell All or Part of My Practice Now?
Values of businesses including dental practices rise and fall. At the moment, values of larger practices in specific areas are at historic highs, but we believe 2023 will be the best time to monetize a practice for the next three+ years given the Covid Earnouts that are available to doctors today, which will cease later in 2023. Covid Earnouts functionally pay a doctor for performance AFTER an initial closing which for growing practices can sometimes increase value over time by 10% to 40% depending upon the growth rate of the practice. LPS has achieved values of 4x+ collections in 2022 with many over 2x. The first doctor to partner with an IDSO in an area often achieves a higher value over the second.
What Happens to the Doctor in a Sale of All or Part of the Practice?
In most cases, higher values are achieved with a doctor interested in remaining with the practice to execute a growth plan for five or more years. Generally, partners/buyers would like the great doctors to stay forever. However, we have completed transactions where the doctor retired the day of closing. Doctors continue to lead their practice under their brand, team and strategy and are not micromanaged nor do IDSOs attempt to homogenize practices as the branded DSOs might.
Who Runs the Practice After a Sale of All or Part of the Practice?
This is dependent upon the doctor’s and partner/buyer’s goals, strategy, and pre-transaction agreement. Most transactions require the doctor to remain leading the practice under his/her brand for at least five years.
How Are Doctors Compensated?
Again, this is negotiable, but in most cases the doctor is compensated based on a normal market rate for the area. In an orthodontic transaction, this is typically an annual salary, with GPs and other specialties often compensated by a percentage of their production or collections.
What Happens to My Team Members?
This is buyer/partner specific, but in most IDSO transactions, the team members are still 100% managed by the doctor and typically receive better benefits. You will not be told who to hire, who to fire and what to pay your team members.
Who Makes the Clinical Decisions After a Partnership or Sale?
In theory and by law, the doctor makes all clinical decisions. However, there are certain buyers who we do not work with, who may have other views of this important element.
Will I be Forced to Use Certain Brands of Products and Vendors?
This is buyer/partner dependent, and something discussed up front early in the process, but usually the IDSO volumes can decrease costs on the same brands of products and vendors doctors are using now. The IDSO partners goal is to assist your practice in growth, not attempt to break something they just spent millions to buy.
Under What Brand Will My Practice Operate?
The primary groups LPS works with are IDSOs which value the local brand and goodwill of the doctor. Their goal is for the community to see no change or know that the doctor now has a silent partner. Other buyers, typically in 100% transactions, believe their nationally consistent brand is most valuable. LPS works with very few branded groups. (See Invisible DSO Memo)