Q&A with Stephan Van Wyk
With up-to-date knowledge of the latest market trends and a deep understanding of practice sales and valuations, Dental Elite is one of the largest and busiest agencies in the UK. Here, Stephan Van Wyk describes his experience of his recent sale.
Which consultant in Dental Elite did you work with?
“I worked with Luke Moore for most of the process, but in the event he was unavailable – for instance when he was on annual leave – he ensured that another member of the team was contactable.”
Were they in regular contact?
“Luke and his colleagues were very attentive.”
What was your biggest fear prior to marketing the practice for sale?
“I was concerned that as a seller, service wouldn’t be good as it would be for potential buyers.”
How did you find the bidding process?
“The bidding process never actually took place as I received an offer from a buyer that I was introduced to before a deadline had been set that exceeded the predicted valuation price.”
How did your completion price compare to your original valuation?
“After a discussion with Luke I decided to accept the offer, and as a result, I achieved far over the original asking price. All in all, I am very happy with the final result and I don’t think I would have achieved it had I gone through the bidding process.”
Have you stayed on in the practice?
“The day the sale was finalised was the day I left the practice.”
Was this your choice?
“Absolutely, it was never my intention to remain in the practice after it was sold.”
On reflection, what was the most challenging time in your sale?
“The most testing aspect of the sale was getting everything ready in the due diligence process, as we were pushed to exchange contracts before Christmas. My lawyers were fantastic and Luke handled everything perfectly.”
What advice would you give to future sellers?
“Yes; go with your gut feeling! If you trust a service like I did with Dental Elite then go with it.”
Why did you choose Dental Elite over others?
“I met Luke and other members of Dental Elite at a seminar in London several years ago and I was very impressed with what I heard.”
Where there any delays?
“The process did take a week longer than planned but only because the buyer didn’t have their processes in place and needed to postpone the completion date – it was nothing to do with Dental Elite.”
When did you tell the staff?
“I informed my staff around Christmas, which was when the contracts were exchanged.”
Would you recommend Dental Elite to other vendors?
“Definitely! I had no problems, Luke was very pleasant and I can’t fault the service.”
For more information contact Dental Elite. Visit dentalelite.co.uk, email info@dentalelite.co.uk or call 01788 545 900