By Mark Wright, OD, FCOVD,
and Carole Burns, OD, FCOVD
Feb. 19, 2020
You have decided you want your own practice. Now you have to decide how you are going to achieve that. Here are the pros and cons of starting cold and buying a practice, and how to wade through these benefits and challenges to determine your best path.
A good way to approach this question is to create a chart so you can compare apples to apples.
HELPFUL RESOURCES
THIS is a six-minute and 23-second YouTube video with an accountant and a banker talking about starting cold versus buying a practice.
STARTING COLD RESOURCES
5 Tips to Consider When Opening a Cold Start Optometry Practice
How to Open an Optometry Practice Cold
Opening an Optometry Practice Cold
My Experience Opening My Optometry Practice Cold
BUYING A PRACTICE RESOURCES
There are 14 articles located on the Association of Practice Management Educators web site related to buying a practice. Follow this path to get to them:
Click on the RESOURCES button
Click on the ARTICLES button
Scroll down to PRACTICE PURCHASE
12 steps to buying an optometry practice
Other Articles to Explore
Whether you start cold or purchase an existing practice, both scenarios are investments and should be treated that way. Every successful investor enters a project with two questions in mind: (1) when will I exit this investment? and (2) how much will this investment bring me? Always have a consult with your financial advisor to determine which investment gets you to financial freedom faster and which investment gives you the quality of life you want.
