Dental Q&A: Co-founders Colm and Kieran Davitt
Dental Care Ireland CEO Colm Davitt and his brother, clinical advisor Kieran, set up DCI to fill a gap in the market – and its stellar growth has been a vindication of their belief and hard work
What was your working background before setting up Dental Care Ireland?
Kieran Davitt (KD): I worked as a general dentist in Galway for 20 years, so I suppose it made sense to bring me on board. There was a serious element of trust with Colm as obviously we’re family. My initial role was in an advisory capacity as we looked at practices we could bring on to join the network. The role has been broad but largely it’s been in an advisory capacity.
Colm Davitt (CD): The idea for DCI came from my own professional background in healthcare. My brother Kieran was in the dental sector, and we saw a great opportunity to provide a high-quality dental network.
Did you view it as a risk in the beginning?
CD: It was a logical opportunity but like any business starting up, it was a big risk. But luckily our expectations were borne out and it’s gone really well. Our dreams were realised!
KD: The context is important – big changes had happened in the dental industry when we started in 2014. There had been huge cuts to the PRSI scheme and medical cards, and we had the after-effects of the recession and cuts to private dentistry. Things were getting busier for both general and specialist dentists. I felt they should be improving and doing things better.
We exceeded expectations in the first 12 months – it was about adapting quickly. There was no real breakthrough moment. It’s been slow, steady growth.
How did you convince dentists to come on-board in the beginning?
CD: We got a little funding from contacts and then got some more. We saw a few practices on the market that fitted our key criteria and we agreed terms. After we developed a network of 5 or 6 practices, people were speaking highly of us and we became credible in the eyes of dentists. Our practices all have potential even if some are faster growing than others.
In the early days Kieran was crucial to getting deals over the line. As a dentist, he could talk their language. Our first deals were landmark deals!
KD: At the start there was an element of apprehension, but when dentists realised what was happening was beneficial for staff, they became convinced. The first practices took some time. It helped that I was a dentist myself. After that, word of mouth really helped us as dentists spoke to each other.
CD: We had never worked together before, so working with Kieran on Dental Care Ireland has been so interesting. He’s someone I completely trust and has my best interests at heart. That’s so important; we don’t row! We also have similar personalities which helps. It’s a pleasure to work with him.
What is the Dental Care Ireland strategy?
KD: Dental Care Ireland looks for clinics of a particular size, with 3 chairs or more. We want to work with the right people as the principal dentist generally stays on for up to five years. There really needs to be a personal fit to grow the practice.
CD: We are opportunistic. If we see the right practice we’ll go for it. We’re not overly concerned with targeting specific geographical areas.
KD: When we look for a practice, first and foremost we’re looking for ones that are well run. We don’t want to turn places around 100%. We want as easy a transition as possible. We see potential in places that don’t have the time to market themselves, and where we can introduce a specialist. It’s even better if there’s 2 or 3 dentists in situ because it makes it easier.
What does joining the DCI network mean for dentists and their patients?
KD: We try and upgrade practices, investing in equipment. We price our treatments competitively – we want to give the best value to customers because they are demanding excellent treatment. Dentists in practices we take over don’t have to worry about administrative concerns – they can focus on clinical work, and they love that. There is more and more red tape coming up all the time, so they appreciate the ability to hand things over to us. It frees them up.
We want to give good quality dentistry – we upgrade practices, and also offer training and seminars. Better trained staff are happier, as are customers. Everyone reaps the benefits.
CD: DCI is a highly ethical company that wants to be high quality in everything we do. We don’t go for a low cost model with low quality. We offer a premium service – and a full range of those services.
For dentists, administration is removed as we appoint a practice manager and support the growth of the practices. With that, stress is reduced as there isn’t as much full responsibility for everything. Patients get convenient hours, better services and treatments, and state-of-the-art refurbishments. This all leads to a better customer experience.
What does the future hold for Dental Care Ireland?
CD: We have a goal of 20-30 practices over the next few years but the opportunity could be even bigger. We could expand into other healthcare sectors beyond dentistry in 5-7 years. We are definitely a couple of years ahead of where we thought we’d be at this stage!
We’ve grown so much in two years, but the idea would be to become the largest dental group in Ireland, with at least one or two practices in each county. We want to be the best in each area and for our patients to completely trust us.
For more information on Dental Care Ireland and to visit one of our practices, see dentalcareireland.ie.
