The Real Strategy Behind Multi-Location Dental Practice Growth

Dentists assume growth means opening more locations.

But the truth is, most practices fail during expansion because they scale too early without the infrastructure to support it.

In Episode 34 of My Dental Playbook, Dr. Blake Hamblin and Gary Bird sit down with dentist and entrepreneur Dr. Jason Tanoory to unpack the systems that allow a dental practice to grow beyond a single location.

This conversation focuses on the realities most dentists discover too late: associate turnover, leadership bottlenecks, and operational chaos.

Dr. Tanoory shares a different strategy.

Instead of rushing to open multiple locations, he focused on building a powerful flagship practice first.

That flagship becomes the training ground, culture hub, and operational engine that supports expansion.

Why Flagship Practices Matter

Dentists open a second office before their first location is fully optimized.

The result is predictable:

• leadership gets stretched thin
• associates lack mentorship
• systems begin to break

Dr. Tanoory built his flagship practice to nearly 20 operatories, producing about $1 million per month, before expanding.

That flagship office became the foundation for everything that followed.

It allows:

• new associates to train in a high-performing environment
• systems to be tested before expansion
• culture to remain consistent across locations

Without this foundation, growth often creates more problems than opportunities.

The Real Growth Bottleneck in Dentistry

Expansion is rarely limited by marketing; the real bottleneck is dentist retention.

As Dr. Tanoory explains, the number one barrier to scaling a dental organization is associate turnover.

If dentists leave every two years, expansion becomes impossible.

His solution is a partnership structure where associates earn equity through performance.

Rather than buying into the practice, doctors reach specific production milestones and then earn ownership opportunities.

This approach:

• rewards high producers
• creates long-term retention
• builds leadership inside the organization

Why Some Dentists Should Not Become Owners

One of the most interesting insights in this episode is that not every dentist wants to run a business. Many doctors simply want to focus on dentistry.

Dr. Tanoory built a model designed specifically for those doctors.

Associates can:

• produce at a high level
• earn equity over time
• avoid the operational headaches of ownership

This allows the organization to retain talented clinicians while maintaining strong leadership at the executive level.

The Guardrails for Sustainable Growth

One of the biggest mistakes dentists make is growing too fast. Dr. Tanoory’s organization uses internal guardrails to prevent that. Their goal is roughly 2% annual revenue growth.

This keeps expansion sustainable while maintaining culture and systems.

Instead of chasing rapid scale, they focus on:

• building leadership infrastructure
• strengthening systems
• supporting associates

That approach allows growth without chaos.

The Long-Term Vision

For Dr. Tanoory, this is not about building a group to sell. It is about building a legacy organization that serves both patients and team members long term. That mindset changes the way decisions are made.

Instead of focusing on short-term profit, the focus becomes:

• culture
• leadership development
• sustainable expansion

Those decisions compound over time.

Final Thoughts

Growth in dentistry is rarely about opening more locations. It is about building the systems that make expansion possible.

Dentists who want to scale successfully must focus on:

• leadership
• associate retention
• operational infrastructure

Without those foundations, growth becomes fragile. With them, expansion becomes inevitable.