George & Matilda Eyecare (G&M) continues to expand, welcoming Mr Sean and Ms Robyn Wand from Wand Optometrists in Toukley on the Central Coast of New South Wales. The practice has supported the Toukley community for more than 45 years.
G&M said the acquisition complements the network’s growth plan for the mid-north coast of NSW, following its partnership with Rolfe Optometry Group late last year.
Sean and Robyn both graduated from UNSW, and after a stint working in the UK, they returned to Australia in 1993 to start a family and a business, purchasing a practice established in Toukley in 1978 from a Sydney optometrist who was travelling to and from the city.
“Sean and Robyn each have over 36 years of industry experience and demonstrate our key values by putting patients first every single day,” G&M’s general manager of partnerships, Ms Cassie Gersbach, said.
“They pride themselves on integrity having formed trusted long term, multi-generational relationships. Those relationships continue through the community by working with local GPs and ophthalmologists to manage a high level of patient care for the Toukley community.”
Sean shared why they chose G&M as part of their exit strategy.
“Growing the practice has been exactly like raising a child. So, we are keen for our patients to continue to be looked after long into the future. We are excited that G&M will make this happen. We would have hated to simply close our doors and walk away when we decided to retire,” he said.
Sean said G&M’s growth in their area was also appealing, giving them confidence in the knowledge they can be supported and helped by other members in the group, and vice versa.
“We like that G&M have taken seven years to refine their model. Then, with confidence, move into expansion. We can see already that they know a lot more about running a business than we do. We are looking forward to seeing our practice being invigorated by the change,” he said.
He described the process of selling the practice to G&M as transparent and supportive.
“Any questions or concerns have always been addressed with transparency and ease. We’ve had help and support getting the financials and information needed regarding the sale of the business. There’s been no pressure and we’ve worked at a pace which suited us to get where we needed to be to make our final decision,” Sean said.
“Anyone in our position will know that it is increasingly more complex to market and run a business. The best way to grow is to bring people who have tried and tested systems and who have access to the latest data and technology. After 30 years, Robyn was ready to retire. So, it was better to handover the management side so I could concentrate best on being the clinician without any worry.”
G&M said it is clear on its strategy for bridging the gap geographically across key areas and will have more announcements to share shortly.
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