Episode #143

20/20 Money Episode #143 – Private equity and optometry: a 2021 update with Michael Pote with Growth Cooperative

August 2, 2021

Welcome to another episode of 20/20 Money! My guest on today’s show is Michael Pote.

Michael has been on the show before (you can check out those conversations by clicking here for Part I and here for Part II) to talk about selling your practice to private equity and I wanted to have him back on the show for a couple of reasons as I’ve found myself personally having more conversations and doing more planning with clients that are soon to be or in the midst of selling to a private equity firm. Michael’s had a storied career in the optometry profession and has spent the last 4+ years helping ODs understand and navigate the process of selling to a private equity firm, notably not being tied to any one firm but rather helping the OD find the best deal for their practice.

In this conversation we talk about what ODs get right and wrong about their financials prior to the sale of their practice, a current “state of the market” as it relates to PE deals and his best guess as to the state of the private equity cycle, the range of adjusted EBIDTA multiples he’s seen in recent deals (hint: it’s gone up), and the importance of ensuring you not only have a business plan, but a personal plan for how you’ll exit from your practice.

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As a reminder, you can get all the information discussed in today’s conversation by visiting our website at integratedpwm.com and clicking on the Learning Center. While there, you can also set up a 20-30min Triage conversation to learn a little bit more about how we help ODs around the country reduce their tax bill, manage cash flow, and make proactive money decisions or check out any number of additional free resources like our eBooks and on-demand webinars.

And with that introduction, I hope you enjoy my conversation with Michael Pote.

The Growth Co-op

Consolidation eBook

Getting the Most Out of Your Practice Sale eBook

20/20 Money #55: Contemplating a PE Exit—The Story of Dr. Ken Krivacic, OD

Episode Transcript

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