FYidoctors and ATB HOMEGROWN PARTNERSHIP SEES SUCCESS BEYOND BORDERS

While Alberta is known for its entrepreneurial spirit, FYidoctors has accomplished a rare feat - they’ve shown how innovative thinking and a creative approach can change an industry. Their journey to becoming Canada’s largest eyecare provider has included a strong focus on their clients and building partnerships that support their long-term vision. For more than 15 years, ATB has been proud to partner with the forward-thinking team that has guided FYidoctors’ success.

Wes Jardine, managing director, Corporate Banking, Diversified Industries at ATB Capital Markets says about the business model, “It was unique. It was a doctor-owned, doctor-led company. We call this a roll-up strategy. The FYidoctors brand incorporates standalone clinics but allows the doctors to take on ownership while keeping the independence that led them to create their own brand in the first place. This partnership empowers each owner with shared buying power and resources.”

Jardine continues, “Today you see similar structures in other industries such as dental, but in 2008, this was very new. FYidoctors came to us with 33 original clinics that they wanted us to help them bring together. The vision and drive of the founder, Dr. Alan Ulsifer, along with our team’s research that supported their case, gave us the confidence to help them move forward.”

Tim Hart, managing director, Investment Banking, Diversified Industries and Growth and Innovation at ATB Capital Markets adds, “What impressed me is that ultimately, FYidoctors is laser focused on patient care and partners with other doctors that share that same dedication to patient care. Now, their integrated model allows them to manufacture their own lenses. They are locally creating high-quality products and solutions that fit consumers’ budgets.”

Hart continues, “FYidoctors is not looking for the highest bidder when they partner with clinics. They are looking for strong partners that share their ambition. This led to tremendous success and growth that they did not anticipate. New systems (accounting, processing, etc.) were necessary to quickly accommodate this growth but for FYidoctors, ultimately, the challenge of rapid growth is a long-term advantage.”

ATB helped FYidoctors buy clinics by providing a combination of equity and bank debt to keep pace with the growth. Being nimble and in constant communication with FYidoctors meant ATB has always been in a strong position to quickly support their client through acquisitions.

ATB was pleased to provide FYidoctors with the financial solutions they needed to grow, including credit, loans, cash management, capital market strategies, financial markets expertise and investment banking advisory.

Hart adds: “ATB enjoys working with FYidoctors because they are an innovative, entrepreneur-led company. They are a born-and-raised Alberta success story that has grown to care for patients across Canada - and beyond. They’re proof that an Alberta company can grow meaningfully in size and scope when they have flexible financial support from their financial partners who believe in their vision and potential. We congratulate FYidoctors on all of their success and look forward to continued partnership.” www.atb.com

In short order, this new division had acquired 37 clinics and a recent merger with its biggest competitor boosted that number to around 80 medical aesthetics clinics across the country. As of late 2022, about 30 per cent of them were operating under the Dermapure brand and the rest will eventually follow suit.

This 2021 expansion brought with it a restructuring; FYidoctors became one of the optometry brands alongside Visique in Quebec, FYidoctors USA, Factory Optical and Optiks International, now operating as individual divisions under the FYihealth group umbrella. This structure better reflects the broader health focus of the evolving organization moving forward.

“There’s multiple banners and different business segments, so calling it FYihealth group made more sense. We’ll probably continue to expand into other areas as we continue to grow,” Dr. Ulsifer mentions. “I see tons of opportunity to grow different verticals in healthcare and use what we’ve already built to leverage that for other entities that we consolidate.”

About Fyihealth Group

FYihealth group has created a collaborative framework that allows professionals in the clinics to focus on patient care rather than the complexities of running a business. The Home Office located in Calgary wants the future practices who join to feel that it was the best decision they ever made. The organization steered away from managers dictating how things would be done and instead adopted a Coaching Culture where everyone works together to provide value and improve performance. There is a customer service program in place, named the Patient Pathway, which helps coaches envision and then implement ensure the team is providing the best customer experience at every visit and at every location.

The effectiveness of the programs and philosophies employed throughout the organization is easy to see. The Delta laboratory manufacturing facility has become one of the largest lens providers in Canada and it produces and ships more than 3,200 orders per day. FYidoctors was named one of Canada’s Top Growing Companies in 2022 in recognition of its threeyear revenue growth of 65 per cent – an impressive accomplishment for an already large entity – and Dr. Alan Ulsifer was named the EY Entrepreneur of the Year in 2012. The organization has been named one of Canada’s 50 Best Managed Companies by Deloitte and Canadian Business for the past four years running, was recognized as one of Canada’s 50 Most Engaged Workforces and won the award for Most Innovative Use of HR Technology in 2021.

“The awards are nice but that’s not why we’re here. We want to create an environment where people feel proud that they’re having an impact on people’s lives. The two words that describe what we do are ‘enhancing life’. That’s our core DNA,” says Dr. Ulsifer.

FYihealth group has expanded its corporate social responsibility (CSR) strategy to form the Enhancing Life Foundation. Every October during Enhancing Life month, team members choose to support over 100 different charities and outreach programs to help enhance the lives of underserved people across the country.

The organization also provided significant funding to the Eye Institute at the University of Montreal and the University of Waterloo to support research and training. These centres utilize virtual reality to diagnose issues while training optometrists to detect eye disease and advance vision care and health in the country. On top of