A Personable & Exciting Pathway to Sell Your Practice
People, Trust, and Care
For many practice owners, selling is not simply a business decision- it’s a personal one too. Practices are often built over decades, and the decision to sell carries significant emotional weight. At Todays Dental, we understand this and have spent a significant amount of time curating our Acquisitions pathway to ensure we look after the people involved at every stage.
The way we approach acquisitions is shaped by one core principle: trust. From the very first conversation, the focus is on listening and understanding what matters to the practice: its people and its patients. That means taking the time to listen to practices’ wants and needs, and working collaboratively to support them, with the right tools in place to deliver the best possible patient care. From these conversations, it is as important to us to learn what’s worked well for the practice, maintain these parts of their identity and help others grow from it.
We are incredibly lucky to have a team with extensive personal and professional expertise, who can actively support sellers through the emotional change that comes with this decision. Many of our team members within the Acquisitions team have worked within the dental industry at both practice and corporate levels. This means they bring empathy and lived experience of an acquisition to understand the pressures and demands it entails, allowing them to help make the journey as smooth, supported and people focused as possible.
‘There is no secret sauce to how Todays Dental operates a practice. It’s doing the basics really, really well, and it’s really important for us to look after our people. If we can look after our people, give them the tools to deliver the best quality of care to their patients, then everybody benefits.’
- Steve Williams, Chief Commercial Officer
A People Pathway
Every acquisition begins with time and space to talk. Before making any decisions, we focus on understanding the practice’s history, its team, and what the owner hopes to achieve by selling.
These early conversations are not about rushing toward a transaction. They are about establishing the foundations through agreed milestones, discussing priorities on the journey, and exploring our alignment in values, expectations and long-term intent.
We like to give as much clarity and information as possible from the start to help build confidence and avoid surprises further down the line. We’re really mindful of the emotional impact practice owners will often go through. From transitioning from principal to associate, as well as their anxieties around what will happen to their team following the sale. It’s important that we take these concerns seriously and address them openly from the get-go.
‘They’ve done exactly what they’ve said. They’ve done more than they’ve promised in many ways. I think it’s a very genuine organisation. Its heart is in the right place and they really do listen.’
– Mark Hampson, Former Practice Owner
Deeply Human Due Diligence
Due Diligence is often regarded as the most stressful part of selling your practice due to the amount of information required to understand the business. To remove unnecessary friction from the process and to keep the focus on people, not paperwork, we’ve brought the Due Diligence process in-house.
With our own team managing this work internally, it allows us to be more responsive and ensure you have a dependable experience in your relationship with Todays Dental. We’re able to answer questions quickly, reduce duplication and ensure conversations stay clear and consistent. Our goal with this is that sellers and practice teams know who they are speaking to, why information is being requested, and how it fits into the wider picture. This helps maintain trust and momentum.
‘At times when things seem to be running away from us, Kim was an oasis of calm. She was able to say, “No, no, don’t worry about this. This is absolutely fine.”’
-Don Gibson, Former Practice Owner
Where possible, we try and hold the practice team’s hands through the entire process, because we understand that this isn’t something that everyone does every day. With our open lines of communication we align timelines more closely by adjusting around the realities of running a busy practice, explaining requests in plain language, phasing information gathering, and agreeing realistic deadlines. If there is something you’re worried about, talk to us. If there’s a hurdle, we can overcome it, and we can do it together.
‘We understand the stresses of transactions. When it’s your own business, it’s obviously so much more personal. It’s something that you’ve built up, but it’s personal for us too, because you’re joining Todays Dental and we want to build that working relationship with you.’
– Nancy Hawksworth, Transaction Co-ordinator
Managing Change Personably
While principal dentists are experiencing their own emotional journey, practice teams are often navigating uncertainty about what change will mean for them day to day. Alongside this, Practice Managers (PMs) may step into broader leadership roles as part of the acquisition journey, taking on challenges they may not have faced before. This is where our Transition Managers shine – acting as a guiding and supportive presence throughout the transition, and helping turn change into opportunity.
From clinicians and nurses to reception teams and managers, we take the time to get to know people properly. This is not a box-ticking exercise; it reflects our genuine belief that strong relationships underpin successful practices.
Transition Managers
Transition Managers (TMs) play a central role in this. From day one, they spend time on-site, listening to concerns, understanding how the practice operates day to day, and building trust with the team. Our TMs can be found making teas, bringing doughnuts and asking about their weekend, and throughout this time, they often become like another member of the practice team.
Tara Neeves, before becoming one of our Transition Managers, was Head Nurse at one of the practices that joined Todays Dental a couple of years ago. This means she has a lot of empathy for newly joined teams: ‘Whatever you’re feeling, I felt it’. This allows our TMs to tailor the transition to the needs of the practice, safeguarding the team and amplifying their voice.
Timelines are adjusted here too, to reflect how teams are feeling and what they can realistically absorb. Introductions to the wider Todays Dental teams are carefully paced, taking place when practices feel ready rather than being imposed. That flexibility helps teams feel in control and supported, rather than overwhelmed. Sometimes this process is slowed down and others sped up. It really depends on the people.
‘I think Tori [Transition Manager] in many ways calmed the staff nerves almost instantaneously because of her approachability and honesty as well. She’s an angel. Quite simply. She’s fantastic. Exactly right for the job.’
-Don Gibson, Former Practice Owner
Dreaming a Future
Bringing the acquisition pathway to a close, is the first step towards the future – a practice’s Discover, Dream Day. Creating a space for the whole practice team together, we provide an opportunity for every voice to build a vision of the practice’s future, both as a business and individually. This is empowering our people and providing the support needed to make it reality.
To learn more about how we run our Discover, Dream Days, check out our blog here.
Beacons of the Community
From the first conversation to the last agreed milestone, we work closely with principals and the teams to provide clarity, guidance, and reassurance. In both professional and personal capacities, our deeply human approach allows them to see the opportunities ahead, feel confident in their ongoing role, and know that their team and patients remain at the centre of every decision.
Interested? Take the first steps on your journey by contacting the team for a chat and learn more.