Scaling a leading orthodontic network through M&A

We are partnering with Smile Doctors to help the company expand its reach through strategic mergers and acquisitions.

Smile Doctors is the largest orthodontic support organization, providing business management and support services to orthodontic practices across the United States. The company partners with leading orthodontists to deliver best-in-class patient care and clinical excellence.

The Opportunity

Smile Doctors is the largest orthodontic support organization in the United States, offering business management and operational services that include marketing, back-office staffing and group purchasing and procurement. The company helps free up orthodontists so they can focus on what they do best—providing excellent patient care. Supporting over 300 practices across more than 20 states and around 1.5 million patient visits per year, Smile Doctors was well-positioned to grow.

The Challenge

At the start of our partnership, Smile Doctors had a national footprint and a solid reputation among orthodontists, but the company wanted to expand into new regions and attract new doctors.

The Results

Leveraging our operational expertise, we are working with Smile Doctors to help accelerate its growth through broader M&A and integration efforts. We are helping to create a flywheel effect, where increased scale creates greater efficiency, savings and customer support, bolstering the company’s reputation and helping attract more orthodontic practices to its network.

Customer growth

In the first year of our partnership, 25 new practices and 42 new orthodontists joined Smile Doctors.

Expanded reach

The company entered 45 new cities and three states where it previously did not operate.

New locations

Smile Doctors acquired 53 new business locations.

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Smile Doctors Receives Strategic Investment from Thomas H. Lee Partners
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THL Joins Linden Capital Partners in Equal Partnership Alongside the Affiliated Orthodontist Owners to Support Smile Doctors’ Continued Growth (Georgetown, TX) January 5, 2022 – Smile Doctors, the largest and fastest growing orthodontics-focused dental support organization (“OSO”) in the U.S., with more than 295 locations, announced a strategic investment from Thomas H. Lee Partners, L.P. (“THL”),

For a list of all portfolio company investments made by THL since its inception, please click here.

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