Market Outlook for Veterinary Practices – What’s Next?

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It’s been a turbulent and challenging year, and yet, veterinary market spend continues to grow. With the number of adopted pets up more than 2x over last year in many regions and remarkably resilient consumer spending, veterinary hospitals are balancing pent-up demand from delayed visits and the influx of new patients while adjusting to new protocols, staff absenteeism, and rising costs.

For veterinary practice managers and owners, let us first recognize how much of an accomplishment it is to have continued to serve your patients and clients this year. There is no denying that this has been an exhausting challenge handled with grace. Veterinary market growth for 2021 is predicted at 20%, but with so much change happening so quickly, it helps to take a step back and look beyond the numbers at the trends that may impact your clinic:

Opportunities

  • Increasing pet ownership in the stay-at-home era can grow your book of business.
  • Improved availability of candidates can increase your access to quality new hires.
  • Monetizing telemedicine may allow you to charge more accurately for the remote consults and the after-hours calls that you’ve always taken.
  • Optimizing floorplans and protocols to address waiting room concerns and accommodating curbside visits allows your clinic to rework existing space in ways that enhance treatment rooms and improve patient flow.
  • Introducing new 503B medicines allows you to optimize in-house pharmacy quality and profits.

Challenges

  • Staff burnout is prevalent now more than ever. Take care of yourself and your staff. There are things you can do to help.
  • Slowing deal flow and increased financial scrutiny make it important to consistently check your benchmarks and optimize margins. 
  • Online shopping and big-box pharma are changing the veterinary medicine space. The entry of Walmart and others into veterinary medicine retail means quality controls and a trusted relationship with pharmacy vendors is more important than ever to gain client confidence.
  • Shifting expectations as client mix changes from Baby Boomers to Millennials and Gen Z means a change in the types of patients and service expectations. This change could prove to be an opportunity or a challenge.

As you look back at the changes your practice has already undergone in 2020 and look ahead to increasing demand and speed of change, it can help to consider each aspect of your clinic as a separate profit center. Our pharmacy best practice guide is a great first step.

Download the guide:
Establishing & Managing Veterinary Best Practices

Epicur Pharma and its sister company, Stokes Pharmacy, are committed to supporting veterinary hospitals and their patients with top quality medicine when and how they’re needed. Please reach out to our customer service teams if we can help you navigate challenges or medication questions.

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