Premier Choice Healthcare (PCH) is exploring a number of new acquisition opportunities following its purchase of Equity Health Solutions.
The firm confirmed it was in conversations with more firms as part of a three-way growth plan with acquisitions proving a key element to this long-term strategy.
Earlier this week, PCH announced it had acquired Equity Health Solutions for an undisclosed sum. The deal was its second since GRP took a majority shareholding in PCH last year and followed the acquisition of the portfolio of SJA International at the start of this year.
PCH executive director Claire Ginnelly (pictured) told Health & Protection that Equity Health, which was already a PCH appointed representative prior to its purchase, had proven very successful within the consumer market and would be a trading division of PCH.
“We do already have consultants within Premier Choice Healthcare, consultants employed by Premier Choice who write consumer business,” Ginnelly said.
“But Equity Health is doing it on a bigger scale and what this acquisition means is that we can invest more into Equity so that it can continue to grow.
“Equity will eventually become a trading division of Premier Choice. It will be the consumer part of the business and the vast majority of the consumer business under Premier Choice will sit under Equity.”
Keeping what has made Equity successful
Ginnelly added this was because PCH did not want Equity to lose any of what has made it successful to date in areas such as its lead generation and marketing.
“We didn’t want to buy them and lose a big part of what makes them successful so hence it makes sense to us to keep it as Equity and keep it as a separate trading division of Premier Choice focusing on the consumer market.”
In terms of PCH’s future strategy on acquisitions, Ginnelly explained that part of the attraction of GRP taking a majority shareholding in PCH was that its model is to invest in the brokers it purchases to enable them to grow.
Three pillars to growth strategy
Ginnelly added that while Equity had been an appointed representative of PCH, SJA International had not been and PCH was looking at a number of acquisition opportunities as part of its growth plan, which is based in three pillars.
“We have the organic growth – so just the natural growth that we would be looking at anyway. Since we became part of GRP, acquisitions is a big one and the other big one is the opportunity we have sell into GRP clients, of which they have hundreds of thousands,” she continued.
“So those three strands are the pillars of our growth strategy moving forwards because absolutely acquisitions will be on there and there are a number we’re talking to.”
But Ginnelly also revealed PCH is happy to speak to other appointed representatives within its network looking to sell their business.
“With regards to our own appointed representatives, of which we have quite a lot, we have not gone out to any of them and said, ‘we want to buy your business’ – that’s not the plan,” Ginnelly said.
“However, we have gone out to all of them and said, ‘if you’re looking to sell your business, if you’re looking to go in a different direction, retire or whatever, then please come and talk to us, because we are wanting to buy more business’.
“And although buying an appointed representative doesn’t from day one grow the amount of premium income that we control, because it already sits under our agency, it does make a difference.
“It does enhance the value of the business because that business becomes our business as opposed to the appointed representative’s business.”