Background and challenge

A global private equity firm invested in an alliance of independent optometry practices. It developed new service offerings and improved sales and marketing, resulting in significant growth of the membership base and revenues.

The private equity firm was now considering the sale of the alliance of practices. In order to support the sale, L.E.K. Consulting developed an independent report that assessed the optometry alliance’s addressable market, competitive positioning, value proposition, revenue projections and strategic growth opportunities.

Approach and recommendations

We leveraged secondary reports and our intellectual property to develop an objective view of the market and growth drivers. We also conducted a robust primary research campaign representing a cross-section of the market with a diverse range of characteristics and purchasing behaviors. The campaign spanned an online survey of hundreds of independent optometrists and interviews with optometrists, vendors and industry experts. In addition to external research, we interviewed and surveyed the client’s customers.

We determined that the optometry market will likely experience strong growth and the client’s alliance is poised to gain share. The business model is strategically well-positioned and optometrists are highly satisfied.  Based on extensive market research, analysis and prior expertise, we built a bottom-up model of the addressable optometrist alliance market and forecast the client’s potential growth. We also identified and assessed several growth opportunities representing potential upside for the business.

Results

L.E.K. worked with management to develop a compelling investment thesis and narrative.  Additionally, we assisted with the sale process by presenting the research to interested buyers. Our comprehensive report for potential buyers helped facilitate the sale of the independent optometrist alliance and enabled an optimal exit for the client.

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