Blueprint for a Successful Practice Sale—featuring Dr. Kevin Kenny

Blueprint for a Successful Practice Sale—featuring Dr. Kevin Kenny

12/1/2025 1:16:16 PM   |   Comments: 0   |   Views: 151

View More Episodes: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-dental-boardroom/id1518344747 


You’ve worked so hard for so long to build a private dental practice in your community. But now you’re thinking about exiting the business.


So, how do you know when it’s time to retire? What can you do to plan for the next chapter of your life?


Dr. Kevin M. Kenny is Adjunct Professor at the University of California, San Diego, and Founder of The Dr. Kevin M. Kenny Foundation, an organization that provides dental care at no cost to the working poor in San Diego and sponsors humanitarian missions overseas.


Dr. Kenny ran his own large private dental practice in San Diego for many years before retiring seven years ago.


On this episode of the Dental Board Room Podcast, Dr. Kenny joins host Wes Read to explain how he knew it was time to pass the torch and share his experience with selling a successful dental practice.


Dr. Kenny discusses the team of advisors you need to plan a practice sale and challenges us to consider what retirement will look like before we walk away.


Listen in for Dr. Kenny’s advice to young doctors on buying a dental practice and learn his simple blueprint for a successful practice sale.


Topics Covered

 

A high-level overview of Dr. Kenny’s career as a dentist

How Dr. Kenny knew it was time to sell his practice

Determining how much money you need for retirement

How bankers calculate the value of a dental practice

The CPAs role in helping you plan for a practice sale

Mitigating your tax liability in a dental practice sale

When to do a broker sale and when to sell your practice privately

The pros and cons of selling your practice to a DSO

Why you should hire an attorney who specializes in dental transitions

Cleaning up your books before you sell your practice

How to create a business plan for your retirement

Advice for young doctors who’ve just bought a practice

Dr. Kenny’s blueprint for a successful practice sale

The humanitarian mission of Dr. Kenny’s foundation


Connect with Dr. Kevin Kenny


The Dr. Kevin M. Kenny Foundation


Connect with Wes Read & Drew Phillips


Practice Orbit

Email wes@practiceorbit.com or drew@practiceorbit.com 

Practice CFO

Practice CFO on Instagram

Practice CFO on Facebook

Practice CFO on YouTube


Resources 


Dr. Kenny on Dental Board Room Podcast EP018

McLerran & Associates

Global Dental Relief

How to Win Friends & Influence People by Dale Carnegie

The One Minute Manager by Kenneth Blanchard and Spencer Johnson

The Richest Man in Babylon by George S. Clason

Excerpt


You’ve worked so hard for so long to build a private dental practice in your community. But now you’re thinking about exiting the business. How do you know when it’s time to retire? And how do you prepare for the transition? Listen in as Dr. Kevin Kenny shares his blueprint for a successful practice sale.  


Email Promo Guest


You’ve worked so hard for so long to build a private dental practice in your community. But now you’re thinking about exiting the business.


How do you know when it’s time to retire? 


And what can you do to plan for the transition?


On the latest episode of the Dental Board Room Podcast, I sit down with host Wes Read to share my experience with selling a lucrative dental practice.


I walk you through the team of advisors you need to plan a practice sale and challenge you to consider what retirement will look like before you walk away.


Listen in for advice to young doctors on buying a dental practice and learn my simple blueprint for a successful practice sale.


Social Blurbs Guest


Twitter – 

Enjoyed the opportunity to share my blueprint for a successful #dentalpracticesale on the #DentalBoardRoom #Podcast! Listen in on my conversation with Wes Read and learn how to design a business plan for your #retirement.


Other Platforms – 

Honored to sit down with host Wes Read @PracticeCFO on the #DentalBoardRoom #Podcast! Listen in as we discuss my blueprint for a successful #dentalpractice transition and explore the financial and psychological aspects of retiring from private practice. #retirement #dentalpracticesale


Social Blurbs Host


Twitter – 

What is the blueprint for a successful #dentalpracticesale? Listen in as Dr. Kevin Kenny explains what motivated him to sell his practice and offers advice on creating a business plan for #retirement. #DentalBoardRoom #Podcast


Other Platforms – 

You’ve worked so hard for so long to build a private #dentalpractice in your community. But now you’re thinking about exiting the #business. So, how do you know when it’s time to #retire? What can you do to plan for the next chapter of your life? Listen in as Dr. Kevin Kenny shares his blueprint for a successful #dentalpracticesale. #DentalBoardRoom #Podcast


Email Promo Host


You’ve worked so hard for so long to build a private dental practice in your community. But now you’re thinking about exiting the business.


So, how do you know when it’s time to retire? 


And what can you do to plan for the transition?


On the latest episode of the Dental Board Room Podcast, Dr. Kevin Kenny joins us to share his experience with selling a successful dental practice.


Dr. Kenny discusses the team of advisors you need to plan a practice sale and challenges us to consider what retirement will look like before we walk away.


Listen in for Dr. Kenny’s advice to young doctors on buying a dental practice and learn his simple blueprint for a successful practice sale.


Quotes


Dr. Kenny—


“Plan on two years. If you think you're going to go out at 65, you need to start meeting with the bankers, the accountants, the lawyers at 63.”


“What the bank is really telling you is what they are going to lend the young doctor on your practice. And it's going to be based on your cash flow and not on your CT or your groovy equipment you have. They want to know what the cash flow is. It's a numbers game.”


“Here's the deal with the brokers. You're going to meet with the brokers. They want you to sign a paper. Shake hands and don't bring a pen. Don't sign anything.”


“When you sell the practice, you must be ready to walk out the door.”


“Don't go into any negotiation if you cannot walk away.”


“If you're selling your practice, you better start cleaning up your books.”


“Make a business plan for retirement, or else you're in for a state of shock. You lose your sense of purpose.”


“Be honest with yourself. Are you competent? You are not ready for private practice if you are not competent. You are ready for stress beyond belief if you cannot deliver the goods.”


“Don't become complacent. That is the enemy of all business.” 


“If you buy a practice, don't change anything the first year. Don't even change the toilet paper.”


Wes—


“The challenge you have when you don't use a broker is that there's nobody, every day, waking up thinking, ‘I only get paid if this gets through the finish line.’”


“Generally, you're better off not selling to a DSO in spite of the big, eye-popping number they present to you on day one. The only time I see it really works is when they have that equity rollover.”


“There are some terms that are worth walking away from the deal over. And there are other terms that probably aren't worth walking away from the deal for. A good attorney is going to help crystallize that for you.”


“The more that you can make it easy for the buyer and the bank to understand what is the true business cash flow, the better.”


Want more podcasts from The Dental Boardroom? - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-dental-boardroom/id1518344747
Want more podcasts from The Dental Sales? - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-dental-practice-sale/id1677648235

Discover Your Complete Financial Team: https://practicecfo.com/
Discover The Best Marketplace to Buy or Sell a Dental Practice: https://practiceorbit.com/

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