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The Hidden Profit Lever: What Inventory Is Really Costing Your Practice
Most practice owners know inventory is a problem. Few realize just how much it's quietly costing them.
In this episode, Martin and Peter sit down with Emmitt Nantz, co-founder of Inventory Ally, to unpack why COGS is the most overlooked profit lever in veterinary medicine and why fixing it doesn't require firing anyone or seeing more patients. Emmitt also makes a compelling case that veterinary medicine is a service business first, and that practices winning long-term lean into client relationships, not just transactions.
In this episode:
- Why COGS, not revenue or labor, is the biggest and most actionable profit lever
- How most practices carry 30–40% more inventory than necessary
- The hidden opportunity cost: staff counting pills instead of delivering care
- Online pharmacy as a complement to in-house inventory, not a replacement
- Client lifetime value vs. average transaction; the real measure of success
- The Stethoscope & Spreadsheet Seven: Emmitt answers Questions #1 and #4
Timestamps:
00:00 — Intro & welcome
00:53 — Emmitt's background: 20 years in vet med ops, Banfield, SmartFlow, IDEXX & Inventory Ally
04:25 — Breaking down the P&L: revenue, labor, and COGS
06:37 — The PE arbitrage opportunity and why COGS is the answer
08:53 — The emotional case for fixing inventory over cutting staff
09:43 — Inventory as an enabler of service, not the service itself
12:10 — Why practices over-order and the 30–40% excess finding
14:41 — Headwinds and tailwinds for independent practices
19:00 — The cost of inaction is getting exponentially higher
21:57 — The opportunity cost of staff time on inventory vs. client care
23:00 — Online pharmacy: complement, not replacement
26:52 — Does online pharmacy inflate your COGS percentage?
27:29 — It's not about the percent; it's about the dollar
30:30 — Client lifetime value vs. average transaction
32:25 — The Stethoscope & Spreadsheet Seven begins
32:54 — Question #4: What is your greatest joy in this work?
33:30 — Question #1: If not vet med, what would you have done instead?
37:31 — Emmitt's final thought: treat supplier relationships as partnerships
38:22 — Outro
Mentioned in this episode:
- Inventory Ally · inventoryally.com
- Veterinary Management Groups (VMG) · myvmg.com
- SmartFlow (acquired by IDEXX) · Banfield Pet Hospital · Galaxy Vets
New episodes every two weeks. Supported by Veterinary Management Groups (VMG) · myvmg.com
View all episodes
By The Stethoscope and The SpreadsheetMost practice owners know inventory is a problem. Few realize just how much it's quietly costing them.
In this episode, Martin and Peter sit down with Emmitt Nantz, co-founder of Inventory Ally, to unpack why COGS is the most overlooked profit lever in veterinary medicine and why fixing it doesn't require firing anyone or seeing more patients. Emmitt also makes a compelling case that veterinary medicine is a service business first, and that practices winning long-term lean into client relationships, not just transactions.
In this episode:
- Why COGS, not revenue or labor, is the biggest and most actionable profit lever
- How most practices carry 30–40% more inventory than necessary
- The hidden opportunity cost: staff counting pills instead of delivering care
- Online pharmacy as a complement to in-house inventory, not a replacement
- Client lifetime value vs. average transaction; the real measure of success
- The Stethoscope & Spreadsheet Seven: Emmitt answers Questions #1 and #4
Timestamps:
00:00 — Intro & welcome
00:53 — Emmitt's background: 20 years in vet med ops, Banfield, SmartFlow, IDEXX & Inventory Ally
04:25 — Breaking down the P&L: revenue, labor, and COGS
06:37 — The PE arbitrage opportunity and why COGS is the answer
08:53 — The emotional case for fixing inventory over cutting staff
09:43 — Inventory as an enabler of service, not the service itself
12:10 — Why practices over-order and the 30–40% excess finding
14:41 — Headwinds and tailwinds for independent practices
19:00 — The cost of inaction is getting exponentially higher
21:57 — The opportunity cost of staff time on inventory vs. client care
23:00 — Online pharmacy: complement, not replacement
26:52 — Does online pharmacy inflate your COGS percentage?
27:29 — It's not about the percent; it's about the dollar
30:30 — Client lifetime value vs. average transaction
32:25 — The Stethoscope & Spreadsheet Seven begins
32:54 — Question #4: What is your greatest joy in this work?
33:30 — Question #1: If not vet med, what would you have done instead?
37:31 — Emmitt's final thought: treat supplier relationships as partnerships
38:22 — Outro
Mentioned in this episode:
- Inventory Ally · inventoryally.com
- Veterinary Management Groups (VMG) · myvmg.com
- SmartFlow (acquired by IDEXX) · Banfield Pet Hospital · Galaxy Vets
New episodes every two weeks. Supported by Veterinary Management Groups (VMG) · myvmg.com