OpenRoom’s Bella Perry discusses the U.S. Fall DentalForum meeting, DSO procurement/operational priorities and finding the right vendor partners for the one-on-ones with decision makers, and the panels, round tables, and networking sessions planned.
DSOPro: Tell us about your background and how you got involved with DentalForum.
I’ve been with OpenRoom, working alongside the Founders of DentalForum, Emma Faure and Fiona Horan, for over 3 years now. Our company hosts 16 B2B events annually across various sectors, including human healthcare, animal health, and retail. I have quickly become a specialist in dentistry, overseeing DentalForums being held in the U.S. (Spring and Fall), Europe, and the UK.
Along with my Account Manager, Izzy Oliver, I am responsible for bringing the best of the DSO market (and that includes emerging organizations) to DentalForum. Unlike many events, our offering is different in that there is no cost to the DSO – we even cover their hotel rooms.
I’m also responsible for ensuring the educational sessions are relevant and thought provoking and that we create the perfect environment for facilitating peer-to-peer networking. This includes panel debates, round tables, and “get to know you” sessions.
And finally, I work with the DSOs to understand their procurement and operational priorities to ensure we bring in the right partners for them to talk to during the one-to-one meetings with vendors, where each DSO company receives a personalized schedule reflecting their interests and priorities.
DSOPro: How much have you and the events grown in those 3+ years?
My family has a dental background, with my dad being a dentist for 25 years, working in both private practice and with large corporates like {my}dentist and Bupa. This role has deepened my understanding of the dental industry, specifically the DSO and dental group space, providing a unique perspective through our impartial events.
Our neutral stance allows us to observe the evolution of the DSO space, especially in procurement and vendor trends, from an international perspective. For example, AI advancements are rapidly adopted in the U.S., UK, and Europe but face slower implementation in the Middle East and APAC regions due to cost and training challenges.
Our June UK meeting was our biggest DentalForum yet, with 50 UK groups, 64 vendor partners, and 250 industry decision-makers in attendance. Held at the Asia Gardens hotel in Spain, it was notably successful due to the openness to engage and share knowledge. Our USP (unique selling point) is face-to-face meetings with decision-makers in concentrated numbers, maintaining an intimate environment for strong professional relationships. Our events will not grow larger to preserve this intimacy, with roughly 180 attendees expected to attend DentalForum USA Fall in September in Bonita Springs, Florida.
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DSOPro: What kind of progress has the U.S. made in terms of DSO growth and development?
The number of DSOs in the U.S. has surged, with emerging, mid-market, and established groups constantly developing and growing. There’s a notable increase in knowledge sharing among these groups, with a willingness to meet and learn from each other. DentalForum is perfect for this, providing an unofficial mentorship program, and facilitating one-to-one conversations and collaboration between experienced DSO leaders and new decision-makers.
Investment and AI significantly contribute to U.S. DSO growth. Financial backing has accelerated M&A of independent practices, with senior doctors retiring and younger doctors joining DSOs/DPOs for business support and advanced practice opportunities. This trend is driven by economic factors like student debt, mortgages, inflation, and living costs.
DSOPro: How does that compare to international DSO growth?
Challenges and trends are similar across regions, including political uncertainty, poor oral health standards, dental deserts, recruitment and retention issues, and digitalization. While these issues are universal, their impact varies by region. Consolidation in Europe continues, with impressive DSOs in Germany, Spain, Portugal, and the Netherlands. Key players include European Dental Group, Colosseum Dental, Dentius, Portman Dental Care, and DentalPro, many of whom attend our EMEA (Europe, Middle East, and Africa) Forum in October.
The Middle East lags in DSO development but boasts incredible dental hospitals offering comprehensive services. Countries like Morocco face restrictions on owning multiple hospitals, affecting traditional growth. Our October DentalForum EMEA aims to expand networking and learning opportunities with diverse industry professionals.
Australia and New Zealand’s DSO market is fast-growing, with key names like Impression Dental Group, Pacific Smiles Group, and Abano Healthcare. Investment in the ANZ region is increasing, with collaboration between ANZ and UK groups, acknowledging the need for doctor exchange programs to incentivize retention.
DentalForum facilitates knowledge exchange and connectivity, and we are excited to launch a series of international webinars in Q4 2024, which will enable cross-border ideas between DSOs.
DSOPro: What are some of the highlights of your events this year and the new technologies that you consider important to be up to speed on?
Remaining neutral, I can’t mention specific companies, but the key objectives for a group owner include quality patient communication and care, maximizing EBITDA, ensuring patient loyalty and return, generating new business, providing a good workplace environment, staff training and retention, business development, meeting investment expectations, and exit planning.
For patients, the focus is on accessibility, affordability, and necessity—getting appointments, managing costs, and prioritizing oral health. DSOs support practices and patients, so any technology or solution addressing these challenges is essential.
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DSOPro: What can you tell us about the sessions and speakers planned for the fall U.S. meeting?
Our format includes a Dental Group networking session, allowing DSO/DPO representatives to connect informally. We collaborate with Andrew Smith and the ADSO team, who will share updates with attendees. We’re also partnering with Women in DSO and Dr. Aman Kaur to provide a platform for her members to speak at our events. Aman will moderate a panel on optimizing EBITDA, with insights from decision-makers at Heartland, Squire Dental, and Dental Care Alliance.
Dave Salciccioli from Singing River Dental Partners will moderate a panel on practical implementation strategies within growing groups. Our sessions remain panel and conversation-oriented, encouraging attendee participation.
DSOPro: What do you see trending in group purchasing organizations?
GPOs are predominantly found in the U.S. market, with no direct equivalents in the UK or EMEA, likely due to the large number of clinics operating independently. How GPOs evolve in 5-10 years’ time, with the speedy consolidation of independent practices, will be interesting to see. A GPO’s current definition of “growth” may need to be re-structured perhaps with sector diversification, service enhancement, and geographic expansion.
Our U.S. events allocate four spots for GPOs within the dental group structure. Industry partners and DSOs have mixed reviews about GPOs, reflecting diverse priorities and interest levels.
Gaining an understanding of the role and negotiations of GPOs is particularly beneficial for teams with relevant experience. A GPO can be invaluable for clinic owners, who are by training clinicians, and therefore could lack the business acumen necessary to thrive and grow.
DSOPro: When we talked 2 years ago, Fiona and Emma mentioned that lab attendees and presenters were growing and the interest in the lab industry was increasing. Has that continued?
A dental lab provides a wide range of services and products to dental clinics, supporting their operations and enhancing patient care. Lab interest remains extremely popular and continues to grow, driven particularly by technological progress. Examples include digital dentistry such as CAD/CAM technology and 3D printing, development of new advanced materials such as biocompatible polymers, integration with practices via intraoral scanners, and digital workflow streamlining, automation, remote consultations, and continuing education.
These advancements enable dental labs to support clinics more effectively, leading to better patient outcomes, more efficient workflows, and the ability to handle complex dental cases.
Some DSOs are building in-house labs or collaborating with familiar companies. The development of lab DSO chains is notable, particularly in Europe. Despite challenges with regulations, the interest in expanding into new markets is clear.
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DSOPro: Do you want to address any of the global problems everyone is sharing?
While I’m not an expert, many challenges faced in the U.S. DSO space are universal. International collaboration is growing, with professionals eager to learn from each other. UK DSOs are interested in attending our U.S. event in September, and we expect UK representatives at our event in Sitges in October.
We facilitate these connections through our “roaming networker” ticket, ensuring awareness of these opportunities:
DSOPro: Any final thoughts?
DSOs, your time is valuable, and investing it in opportunities outside your daily responsibilities should be purposeful and advantageous. DentalForum will benefit your personal growth, and also enhance the companies you own or represent in a decision-making capacity.
We have spaces at our remaining events this year, DentalForum USA Fall and DentalForum EMEA, and I welcome anyone interested to get involved.
About Bella Perry
Bella Perry was born in Putney, in West London, and raised in the Cotswolds, near Cheltenham. She graduated from the University of Liverpool with a degree in psychology, focusing on mental health. At OpenRoom, she is a Group Account Manager, overseeing human healthcare events, specifically in dentistry, across the U.S., UK, EMEA, and APAC. Outside of work, she enjoys fitness, running, tennis, wakeboarding, almost any water sports, outdoor activities, and socializing opportunities!
DentalForum
OpenRoom Events Ltd. is based in London and was founded in 2004 with a launch business forum in India. Initially specializing in oil and gas, the company has expanded to include events covering retail, healthcare (dental, pharmacy, optical/audio), and veterinary.
Our company values prioritize client care and delivering value to all delegates. We nurture strong relationships with customers, business partners, and suppliers. Our team is committed to high-quality event delivery, fostering an entrepreneurial spirit, and acting on feedback to continuously improve. We take pride in our work, always learning and evolving.
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