From One Chair to Two Locations: Smart Financing Strategies for Growing Eye Care Practices

Scaling Without the Stress

Every practice starts with a leap of faith.

You lease your first office, outfit your first exam lane, and hang your name on the door. Then, slowly but surely, the waiting room fills. You hire staff, add technology, and develop loyal patient relationships. One chair becomes two, and soon the thought hits you:

What if we’re ready for more?

For eye care professionals across the country, that question marks the beginning of a new phase: expansion.

But with it comes uncertainty.

• What if the new location takes longer to ramp up than expected?

• Can I really afford the staff, build-out, and marketing to support it?

• What happens to cash flow during the transition?

At FPG, we help optometrists and ophthalmologists navigate these turning points with confidence—not just by offering financing, but by building strategic, scalable solutions that turn bold vision into real growth.

The Real-World Barriers to Expansion

Expanding a practice is exciting, but it’s far from easy. There are real, practical hurdles that stop many clinicians from taking the leap—even when demand is high and opportunity is clear.

Let’s look at the most common ones:

Build-Outs and Leaseholds

Outfitting a new office isn’t just about rent. You’re funding construction, cabinetry, electrical work, plumbing for lane sinks, HVAC modifications, and sometimes even ADA compliance retrofits. It’s not uncommon for the startup cost of a second location to reach $250,000–$500,000 before the first patient ever walks through the door.

Hiring and Onboarding

New locations require new staff—optometrists, technicians, front desk personnel, and often management layers. But hiring is just the beginning. You’re also covering training costs, payroll, benefits, and lag time before schedules fill.

Advanced Diagnostics for New Services

Many growth-minded practices expand into specialties like:

• Myopia control and ortho-k
• Vision therapy and neuro-optometry
• Dry eye clinics and IPL treatments

Each requires investment in specific, often high-cost equipment (e.g., corneal topographers, neuro-tracking software, or radiofrequency devices).

Cash Flow During Ramp-Up

Revenue takes time to catch up with expenses. Even a well-executed expansion typically sees 3–6 months of underperformance while awareness builds and patient volume stabilizes. That creates cash flow pressure—especially if you’re still supporting your original location.

The good news? Each of these barriers is surmountable—when you approach them with smart, scalable financing.

Financing as a Growth Accelerator

Too often, financing is viewed as a fallback—something you resort to when you can’t self-fund. But for thriving eye care practices, financing is a strategic growth accelerator.

It’s not just about equipment leases. It’s about:

• Unlocking opportunity before someone else takes the market.
• Preserving capital so you can hire, market, and scale without risk.
• Investing with precision, knowing your repayment plan is aligned with revenue projections.

A few examples:

• Launching a pediatric optometry program while your general practice continues to grow.
• Opening a second location near a hospital or school district to increase patient volume and diversify.
• Redesigning your optical space to elevate experience and increase average revenue per patient.
• Moving to a cloud-based EHR system with upfront licensing and staff training support.

Financing transforms if/when thinking into how soon?

Smart Structures That Scale With You

At FPG, we design financing that moves at the speed of your practice—not the speed of red tape.

Our scalable, growth-ready structures include:

Step-Up Payment Plans

Start with lower payments while your new location ramps up. As patient volume grows, so do payments—matched to your projected earnings.

⏳ Deferred Payment Programs

Postpone payments for 60 to 90 days, giving you time to complete build-outs, onboard staff, and launch marketing—without touching reserves.

Working Capital Lines

Use working capital to fund everything outside the exam room:

• Payroll and training
• Inventory and optical displays
• Marketing, signage, and events
• Rent and utilities while revenue grows

Predictable Terms for Better Budgeting

Know exactly what you’ll owe, when, and why. No surprises. No small print. Just smart, transparent financing that supports your trajectory.

We’re here to remove friction—not create it.

Human-First Financing: The FPG Advantage

You’re not applying for a loan. You’re designing a business strategy. That’s why we approach every conversation with a simple premise:

You know your practice. We know how to finance its next phase.

What FPG does differently:

• Real relationships – You’ll work with an FPG expert who understands healthcare and listens first.
• Tailored solutions – No cookie-cutter applications. We custom-structure deals to fit your needs.
• ⚡ Speed that matters – Approvals often within 24–48 hours. Paperwork that won’t slow you down.
• Industry experience – We’ve helped over 8,000 medical practices scale, expand, and thrive.

We aren’t here to “sell financing.” We’re here to fuel momentum.

Expansion in Action: BrightView Vision Centers

The Challenge:

Drs. Eric and Dana Simmons had maxed out capacity at their flagship office in Austin. They saw potential in a fast-growing suburb 15 miles north—but feared the financial burden of launching a second office while managing their current patient load.

The FPG Solution:

• Structured $425K in equipment and leasehold financing with a 90-day deferred start.
• Included $60K in working capital to fund staffing and pre-opening marketing.
• Used a step-up repayment model that aligned with their six-month ramp-up plan.

The Results (12 months post-launch):

• 3,000 new patients served
• $1.1M in incremental annual revenue
• 18% year-over-year growth in total practice value

"FPG didn’t just make the second location possible. They made it strategic. Their team helped us plan, fund, and execute on a level we didn’t know was available."
— Dr. Dana Simmons, O.D.

Growth Is a Journey—Finance It Smartly

If you’re considering expansion—whether that’s a second chair or a second location—one thing is clear:

You don’t need to fund it alone. You need to fund it smart.

At FPG, we’re more than a lender. We’re your partner in growth. We simplify the financial complexity so you can focus on what matters most—your patients, your people, and your vision for what’s next.

Let’s take the next step—together.

Ready to Grow? Let’s Build the Plan.

Call (603) 696-7076
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FPG: Here to help you grow.