Vet Launch

John Younker, DVM, MBA
  • 5.0 (5)
  • Entrepreneurship

As veterinarians, we are trained to handle the most complex problems in medicine and surgery. So why is it that the moment we look at a business items that we feel like we’re back in first-year anatomy? The truth is, the same brain that understands medicine can understand business concepts. If you are a clinic owner, a medical director, practice manager, an aspiring owner, or even a lead tech looking to understand the mechanics of how a practice actually runs, you’re in the right place. Every week, we’re going to tackle a new topic in the business of veterinary medicine.

  1. 18h ago

    Why This $3.2M Vet Practice Still Loses Money (How to Fix a Bad P&L) | Ep. 13

    What separates a vet practice that clears $600K a year from one losing money on the same revenue? It's not what you'd think. John Younker, DVM, MBA sits down with Professor Jeff Sanford, MBA of the UGA College of Veterinary Medicine to break down two real veterinary practice P&Ls, line by line. Same size. Same type of clinic. Wildly different outcomes. One we call "Sad Times." The other, "Good Times." Professor Sanford's has analyzed well over 1,000 veterinary practices, and in this episode he shows you exactly where the money leaks out and how to plug it, using one simple framework: the 20/40/15 rule. Here's the gut punch. The "Sad Times" clinic does $3.2M in revenue and still loses money. Cost of goods running near 29%. Payroll at 53% with underutilized doctors and too many bodies on the schedule. Overhead creeping up everywhere, including a $100K professional fees line that made Jeff's jaw drop. This owner should be clearing $600K a year. Instead they're in the red. Then we flip to "Good Times," a $3.7M practice that does it right: monthly financials, weekly KPI meetings, COGS near 22%, payroll near 36%, and roughly $783K in EBITDA. Same effort. Completely different result. The difference is discipline. In this episode you'll learn: The 20/40/15 benchmark that tells you in 30 seconds if your practice is healthy Why COGS is the expense you have the MOST control over (and how to fix it in 90 days) The inventory behaviors quietly inflating your drug spendWhy discounting is "the cigarette smoking of the vet world" How to spot overhead creep, renegotiate fees, and catch fraud before it costs you The DVM-to-CEO transition that stalls most practices around $3M New to reading a P&L? Start with Episode 12, where John walks through the basics: https://open.spotify.com/episode/4RN4iceccRrw4IdxPWAgg7?si=YMWRysSmRwqcJtDyiDudAA 🎧 Subscribe for more practical finance for veterinary practice owners. No jargon, no MBA required. CHAPTERS 00:00 Tale of Two P&Ls01:11 Podcast Intro and Guest03:46 P&L Buckets Explained05:56 Benchmarks and Percentages09:28 Sad Times Practice Setup11:22 Revenue Trends Breakdown12:53 COGS Deep Dive16:26 Inventory and Pricing Fixes26:22 Payroll Problems and Capacity33:12 Owner Pay and DVM to CEO38:44 Overhead Next Steps38:53 Overhead Expense Creep40:28 Big Overhead Outliers41:30 Professional Fees Shock45:19 Negotiating Bank Fees47:34 Rent Fixed Costs48:17 Expense Discipline Fraud49:01 EBITDA Explained49:46 Why EBITDA Is Negative52:42 Depreciation Passive Income55:49 Sad Times Recap57:18 Good Times Systems59:03 Good Times COGS01:01:04 Payroll Utilization Wins01:04:27 Overhead Normalization01:06:42 Good Times EBITDA Gap01:08:00 Owner Playbook Wrap

    1h 11m

  2. Jun 17

    Episode 12: How to Read a Veterinary Practice Profit & Loss Statement (P&L)

    How to Read a Veterinary Practice Profit & Loss Statement (P&L): Benchmarks, EBITDA, and Monthly DecisionsJohn Younker, DVM, MBA explains how veterinary practice owners can read and use a profit and loss (P&L) statement to make better business decisions. He uses an analogy comparing it to a car’s speedometer with profit at the bottom, revenue pushing up and expenses pulling down. He clarifies why profit on a P&L won’t match cash in the bank due to debt principal payments and capital expenses, and notes cash flow statements and balance sheets cover those areas. He breaks P&L rows into four expense groups—COGS, payroll, overhead, and other expenses—then defines EBITDA and how it’s used for performance comparisons and practice valuation. He recommends getting the P&L by the 15th monthly, reviewing it with a practice manager, and tracking six key numbers with benchmarks: revenue, COGS (20–23%), total payroll (≤40%), staff payroll (14–20%), overhead (~15%), and EBITDA (20–25%).00:00 Financial Literacy Wakeup01:25 P&L as Dashboard02:37 Profit vs Cash03:36 P&L Layout Benchmarks04:45 Expense Groups Overview05:02 COGS Explained06:01 Payroll and Owner Pay06:31 Overhead and EBITDA08:20 Other Expenses Net Income09:29 Monthly Review System10:25 Six Numbers to Track11:44 The 20 40 15 Rule12:30 Revenue Trend Checks13:04 COGS Control Levers14:46 Total Payroll Ceiling15:15 Staff Payroll Fixes16:58 Associate Pay Hiring19:38 Overhead Fixed Costs20:37 EBITDA vs Net Income22:25 Benchmarks and Tradeoffs23:32 TLDR Checklist26:35 Wrap Up Next Steps

    27 min

  3. May 28

    Episode 11: Business Entity & Tax Strategy for Veterinarians

    Business Entities & Tax Strategy for Veterinary Practice OwnersDr. John Younker continues his Vet Launch Podcast conversation with Ruben Cruz of Crulliance Accounting on business entities and tax structures for veterinary practice owners, explaining how entity choice affects liability protection and taxes. They compare sole proprietorships, LLCs, S corps, partnerships, and why C corps are uncommon, including when to make an S corp election to potentially reduce payroll taxes and the importance of setting reasonable compensation to avoid IRS reclassification and penalties. They cover using payroll providers, paying quarterly estimated taxes, and tax planning over multiple years. The episode explains depreciation, Section 179/bonus depreciation, and when accelerating deductions makes sense, plus cost segregation studies for owned commercial property and why real estate is often held in a separate LLC. They discuss legitimate strategies like the Augusta rule and hiring children, warn against running personal expenses through the business, and emphasize coordination between a CPA and financial advisor.00:00 Welcome Back And Agenda01:58 What Is A Business Entity03:31 Entity Types Explained06:51 When To Elect S Corp11:07 Costly Entity Mistakes12:21 Planning For Sale And Real Estate14:49 Reasonable Compensation Rules19:14 Payroll Setup Best Practices21:56 Quarterly Estimated Taxes25:24 Depreciation And Section 17928:02 CapEx Vs OpEx And Cash Flow30:42 Depreciation Timing Strategy33:26 Cost Segregation Basics36:26 Augusta Rule Explained37:54 Hiring Your Kids Legally40:36 Personal Expenses Warning44:25 Social Media Tax Myths47:01 CPA and Advisor Alignment52:00 Day One Setup Blueprint54:40 TLDR Entity and Tax Recap59:49 Final Takeaways and Outro

    1h 1m

  4. May 19

    Episode 10: How to Choose an Accountant for Your Veterinary Practice

    How to Choose an Accountant for Your Veterinary Practice (Vet Launch Podcast Ep. 10) Dr. John Younker interviews Ruben Cruz, CPA and founder of Cruliance (https://crulliance.com/), about choosing the right accountant for veterinary practice owners and startups. They explain key accounting roles (bookkeeper, CPA, tax strategist, managerial accountant, enrolled agent), why accurate bookkeeping matters, and why vets often should not do books in-house due to rework and poor data. They recommend interviewing 2–3 firms at least three months before opening, often choosing a veterinary specialist over a generalist, and clarify that remote firms can still handle state compliance. They outline what "proactive" accounting looks like, interview questions and red flags, common pricing models (hourly, fixed-fee, value-based), and onboarding expectations. They discuss simplifying cash flow with electronic payments, maintaining three months of reserves, paying yourself via payroll or distributions based on entity setup, using standardized chart of accounts for benchmarking, and receiving monthly P&Ls by the 15th. 00:00 Who Should Do the Books 00:59 Vet Financial Scorecard Basics 01:18 Episode Intro and Roadmap 02:58 Accounting Roles Explained 05:56 Bookkeeping Setup Choices 08:50 Owner Time vs Outsourcing 09:53 When to Hire an Accountant 10:46 Specialist vs Generalist 12:21 Do You Need Local 14:19 Proactive Accountant Defined 16:12 Interview Red Flags 17:06 Billing Models in 2026 18:56 Onboarding New vs Switch 20:54 Monthly Reporting Rhythm 22:04 Simplify Payments 23:17 Credit Card Workflow 26:16 Accounts and Reserves 27:51 Owner Pay Mechanics 30:12 Financial Statements Basics 31:59 Monthly P&L Cadence 34:44 Benchmarking Chart Accounts 37:32 AI in Accounting 39:44 Choosing the Right Accountant 40:55 TLDR Key Takeaways

    46 min

  5. May 5

    Episode 9: How to Choose a Group Purchasing Organization (GPO)

    Veterinary GPOs Explained: Discounts vs Rebates, Membership Fees, Vendor Alignment & Real Savings (with Vetcelerator CEO Drew Bartholomew)On the Vet Launch Podcast, host Dr. John Younker interviews Drew Bartholomew, CEO of Vetcelerator , to explain how veterinary group purchasing organizations (GPOs) work and how independent practices can choose and use them effectively. They compare GPOs and break down the three core value mechanisms—membership fees, rebates, and upfront discounts—emphasizing that vendor alignment (matching a GPO to what’s already on your shelf) determines whether savings are realized. Bartholomew explains why rebates can fail in day-to-day workflow because true net pricing isn’t visible at ordering, cites a VHMA survey showing many practices don’t know their savings, and estimates potential savings from $0 to about $2,000 per month per doctor. They discuss stacking GPOs, “primary” status, contractual terms and clean exits, adjacent services (study groups, coaching, marketing, etc), Vetcove’s role in reducing search costs, and key takeaways on standardizing formularies and avoiding duplicate products.00:00 How GPOs Work01:08 Podcast Intro and Guest02:49 Drew Background and Vetcelerator04:01 GPO Basics and Supplier Power06:09 GPO + Costco Model Explained07:41 Fees Rebates and Discounts09:40 Why Discounts Beat Rebates13:36 Measuring Savings and Deals16:48 Typical Savings and Membership Fees19:28 P&L Levers and COGS Focus23:27 How GPOs Choose Vendors26:49 Exclusivity And Primary29:06 Stacking Multiple GPOs31:07 Choosing The Right GPO32:25 Formulary Tradeoffs Framework36:56 Value Add Beyond Discounts39:49 Vetcove Price Aggregators43:38 Direct To Clinic Shift45:30 Exiting And Reviewing Contracts47:15 TLDR And Final Takeaways

    52 min

  6. Apr 27

    Episode 8: How To Negotiate Lab Agreements

    How to Negotiate Lab Agreements: This is the episode that your sales rep would prefer you not listen to...Dr. John Younker breaks down how multi-year veterinary diagnostic lab agreements work and argues they function more like debt instruments than simple equipment deals, driven by minimum purchase commitments, exclusivity clauses, equipment “rental” structures, breach/acceleration penalties, and personal guarantees. He explains the vendors’ recurring-revenue business model and why their margins create negotiating room, then outlines how to evaluate offers by calculating net monthly obligation and benchmarking minimums against typical diagnostic spend (about 15–18% of gross revenue). He flags major risk clauses like price escalators, auto-renewal, and confidentiality, and recommends negotiating through a group purchasing organization for significantly better per-test pricing, gathering competing proposals from major vendors, using objective criteria and walkaway leverage, aiming for downside protection on minimums, pushing for hard price caps, and removing auto-renewal.00:00 Why Lab Deals Feel Secret03:07 Lab Contracts Are Debt04:45 Vendor Business Model Math09:19 Five Common Contract Mechanisms09:42 Minimums And Exclusivity12:08 Equipment And Breach Penalties16:58 Personal Guarantee Explained19:46 How to Compare Offers with Math23:06 Hidden Risk Clauses24:33 Negotiation Strategy Basics24:40 GPOs And Competitive Bids34:46 Key Asks Price Caps Renewals37:35 Why Savings Raise Value39:17 TLDR Summary and Share

    42 min

  7. Mar 31

    Episode 7: How to Set Veterinary Prices

    Pet owners spent over $140 billion on their animals last year. Veterinary revenue is up 40% since 2019. And yet practice profit margins just hit a 10-year low. Patient visits are down. Labor is consuming 40–50 cents of every dollar before you pay for a single drug or a square foot of rent. Something is structurally wrong — and it is not the demand side.The problem is pricing. Not volume.In this episode, John Younker, DVM, MBA breaks down exactly how to price everything in a veterinary practice — pharmacy, preventatives, labs, services, and surgery — using a math-based framework that works whether you are a first-year startup or a ten-doctor hospital. No guessing. No copying the clinic down the street. A system built from the ground up on what your specific practice actually needs to generate to stay financially healthy.You will learn: — Why the "parking meter" mental model changes how you think about every service you perform — The four economic zones of a veterinary practice and why each one prices differently — The exact multipliers and fees for oral meds, injectables, preventatives, labs, and OTC items — and the math behind each one — How to calculate your DVM and tech per-minute revenue targets from your own revenue goal — Why "shopped" services like exams and vaccines price differently than "unshopped" services like surgery and diagnostics — The most common surgery pricing mistake that costs practices thousands of dollars per procedure — How to start fixing your fee schedule this week without overhauling everything at onceIf you have ever shaved an estimate before the client saw it, guessed at a procedure fee, or charged the same thing you charged three years ago — this episode is for you.00:00 Revenue Up, Visits Flat — the paradox nobody is talking about01:14 The Profit Squeeze — how margins hit a 10-year low02:23 The Pricing Problem — why most fee schedules are just guesses04:24 The Parking Meter — what your practice costs per minute to operate07:00 Discounting and Cross-Subsidy — what happens when one service covers another's losses09:24 The Four Economic Zones — pharmacy, labs, services, and surgery09:58 Pharmacy Pricing Math — the framework that applies to every drug you dispense10:44 Oral Medications — the 2x multiplier and why the dispensing fee is not optional14:06 Injectables — why the 2.5x multiplier exists and what the admin fee is really for17:16 Preventatives — the Chewy problem and why matching market price is a strategy, not a concession20:04 Lab Pricing — the Three Tolls framework for in-house and reference lab fees24:21 Diagnostics — where your pricing power actually lives25:28 Service Pricing — the hardest category to price and why25:50 The Profit Pie — industry benchmarks for where every dollar should go26:51 Billable Minutes Math — how to calculate your true revenue-producing minutes27:50 DVM vs. Hospital Revenue — why not all revenue comes from the doctor29:38 The DVM Minute Multiplier — where 7.5x comes from and what it actually means31:15 Tech Minute Pricing — why the tech rate is lower and what it carries32:10 Service Fee Example — putting the per-minute framework into practice33:33 Shopped vs. Un-shopped Services — how to use market pricing without undercutting your math37:00 Surgery Hidden Costs — the line items most practices forget to charge39:54 Surgery Example — building a surgery invoice from the ground up42:06 Multi-Doctor Adjustments — how the framework scales beyond a solo practice43:19 Phased Fee Schedule Fix — where to start and what to do this week45:35 The Math-Driven Mindset — why pricing is a clinical decision, not a sales decision46:23 The Future of Vet Pricing — low-cost clinics, at-home diagnostics, and what's coming47:45 Final Wrap-Up

    48 min

  8. Mar 9

    Episode 6: Veterinary Marketing on a Budget

    Vet Clinic Startup Marketing: Branding, Websites, Local SEO, and Getting Found (with Jeremy DuPont)Dr. John Younker hosts Jeremy DuPont, a physical therapist-turned-marketer who started, scaled, and sold a cash-based PT clinic, to discuss gritty marketing for startup veterinary clinics with limited resources. They cover how strong branding differentiates a practice beyond common pet-logo clichés, using tools like Pinterest and AI to create an minimally viable brand kit, and the naming tradeoff between meaning and SEO. They outline website priorities using the StoryBrand framework, emphasizing “above the fold” messaging and clear next steps, plus essential pages and “money pages” for SEO. The episode stresses that Google Business Profile and local SEO matter more than generic traffic, with consistent updates and review velocity as key ranking factors. They also highlight grassroots community networking, reciprocal partnerships, backlinks, and trust-building to compete with corporate chains, especially in cold-start markets.00:00 Creative Logo Differentiation00:56 Startup Marketing Focus01:34 Jeremy’s Origin Story03:48 Branding Your Clinic Identity06:43 Naming and SEO Tradeoffs09:47 Affordable Design Options12:45 Website Copy Using Storybrand16:02 Above the Fold Essentials19:58 Website Pages and Structure21:59 SEO Pages and Vendor Vetting26:34 Local SEO and Google Maps28:33 Optimize Google Business Profile30:05 Weekly Posts and Photos31:38 Review Velocity Matters33:03 Scrappy Review Tactics35:29 Reduce Friction With Links39:14 Backlinks and Local Partners40:55 Grassroots Community Hustle47:46 Compete With Big Chains50:06 Ideal Vet Customer Journey51:47 Founder Marketing Playbook

    57 min
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About

As veterinarians, we are trained to handle the most complex problems in medicine and surgery. So why is it that the moment we look at a business items that we feel like we’re back in first-year anatomy? The truth is, the same brain that understands medicine can understand business concepts. If you are a clinic owner, a medical director, practice manager, an aspiring owner, or even a lead tech looking to understand the mechanics of how a practice actually runs, you’re in the right place. Every week, we’re going to tackle a new topic in the business of veterinary medicine.

Information

  • Creator
    John Younker, DVM, MBA
  • Years Active
    2K
  • Episodes
    13
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © John Younker, DVM, MBA
  • Show Website
    Vet Launch

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