You’ve pictured it many times: running your own veterinary hospital, building relationships with your clients and practicing medicine the way you want to. No corporate owner deciding which cases, services, and types of pets you can treat. No mandates on medicine. As your own boss, you’re free to serve your community in the best way possible.
Ownership is the ultimate goal for many veterinarians. Perhaps it’s a dream you’ve held since before you earned your DVM. But when it comes time to take the leap, ownership can feel overwhelming. From financing to hiring to simply finding a location, starting your own hospital puts new responsibilities on your plate that fall outside your wheelhouse as a veterinarian.
But what if you could find true independence without taking on every aspect of running a business by yourself? What if there was a way to minimize start-up costs, accelerate the real-estate search, and receive real support to help manage your hospital?
Spoiler alert: there is.
At PetSmart Veterinary Services, our franchise ownership model lets you focus on care without wearing every hat required to run a business — all while still reaping the benefits of ownership.
Equity structure
Just like with your own brick-and-mortar location, you can own 100% of your PetSmart Veterinary Services hospital. It may be our brand on the door, but the business is entirely yours — and you get to keep the profits.
This doesn’t just improve your potential return on investment compared to associate employment, it also grants you more options for compensating staff and planning for your eventual retirement and succession. Want to set up a profit-sharing bonus structure for your employees? You totally can! Want to scale your practice and then sell it to a new doctor? You have that option!
Start-up costs
All PetSmart Veterinary Services hospitals are located inside PetSmart stores. This contributes to our significantly reduced start-up costs, with an initial investment range of $190,650 to $316,000 — often several times less than starting your own brick-and-mortar location. And our one-time franchise fee is just $10,000.
Need financing help? One of our Financial Consultants will work with you to find the best financing package for your hospital — the process is straightforward, transparent and surprisingly easy.
But that’s not all. We waive both occupancy and royalty fees for your first year! And after that, our royalty fees range from just 2.5–3.5% — and they scale with revenue, not time, so you only pay more when you make more.
Finally, another benefit of our in-store hospitals is the built-in foot traffic, with potentially thousands of pet parents walking by your waiting room every week! This can greatly reduce the cost of acquiring new clients and gives your hospital instant visibility.
Autonomy and clinical control
As the owner of your hospital, care is in your hands. While we hold everyone to certain standards, beyond that, you decide the types of pets and cases you see and you make all decisions surrounding care. You are also in complete control of what you charge — and if you have any questions or concerns about pricing, your Business Consultant is here to help.
Operational support
With PetSmart Veterinary Services, you can be independent without being alone. Our teams are here to support you through the opening of your hospital and beyond. We’ll help ensure your back office runs smoothly, with support for IT, staff training, accounting, payroll and more. We also handle marketing and advertising through a shared brand fund that all PVS hospitals contribute to. We’ll write and design emails, social media posts, and in-store print materials specifically for your hospital. Oh, we’ll also help you throw a grand opening celebration to really build the hype!
Growth opportunities
When you own your hospital, the sky is the limit when it comes to growth — and you’re in control. As your client base expands, you can choose how you scale your team and services to match. Want to open a second PVS location? We’ll help you find the perfect one!
The opposite is also true: we’ll never force you to grow in a direction you don’t want to. This is your business, and you get to define what success looks like.
Ready to make the leap into ownership? Fill out the contact form at below or call 480-876-4703 to speak with a Franchise Specialist today.
