Dental Practice Acquisition for DSOs · Retained Buy-Side Origination
Brokered listings mean auctions — every DSO in the market bidding on the same practice. Sentinel is the retained buy-side engine behind acquisitive DSOs: we approach GP and specialty owners by name, off-market, qualify them against your buy box, and put you alone at the table.
or call (888) 560-5852
Auctions vs. Proprietary Flow
By the time a practice reaches a broker, the seller's fee is priced in and every consolidator in the market sees the same deal. The DSOs that grow fastest own the top of their funnel — proprietary conversations with owners who weren't for sale yesterday. That funnel is what we build and run for you.
The retainer typically repays itself on the first closed deal — and the exact numbers take one five-minute call.
Quick answer
For DSOs, Sentinel sources dental practices directly from owner-dentists — off-market, confidential, and verified on production, EBITDA and transition intent before any introduction.
Key takeaways
What We Run For DSOs
Sentinel sources for retained buy-side partners — we never present ourselves as the buyer, and on your mandate we act for you alone — never for the seller. On a retained DSO mandate the cadence we build to runs 2–5 qualified calls a week, 1–3 LOIs a month, and 4–10 closings a year — per platform. See how the same buy-side deal sourcing retainer runs across other acquirer verticals — PE-backed platforms, MSOs, home services and staffing.
We build the full owner universe for your buy box — GP, pediatric, ortho, specialty — and approach owners by name, off-market. No broker listings. The full playbook: DSO acquisition strategy.
Every submission is a practice whose owner confirmed the criteria and said yes to a meeting — operatories, revenue, transition posture verified on the call.
Every target is approved by you by name before any introduction. One target, one partner — your targets are never shopped to another buyer.
20+ qualified calls in the first 90 days and reported weekly. Our floor is higher than most firms' ceiling.
Case File · Confidential
Names redacted by policy — the numbers are not.
We ran retained origination behind a PE-backed DSO platform, sourcing add-on after add-on until the platform stood at more than four times its starting footprint.
On the strength of that record, the fund itself engaged Sentinel directly — to launch an entirely new DSO in a new geography. We sourced the target that became its founding acquisition. The platform is live and acquiring today.
Fund and platforms confidential by policy. Named references available under protocol during your diligence.
From the Live Board
Straight from the live mandate board — anonymized by policy, criteria never softened. Your mandate can be live, sourced, and qualified within the week.
Multi-op general practices for a PE-backed DSO in active add-on mode.
Specialty practices for a consolidator building density across fast-growing Sun Belt markets.
The engine is sector-agnostic; the depth points wherever your mandate does. On the board within the week — criteria locked, owners approached by name.
Engagement Structures · Published Openly
Success-fee-only is available too, at a materially higher fee than Mandate Partners pay. The specific numbers take one five-minute call and arrive in writing within a day — the full ladder is on the engagement structures page.
Straight Answers
Next Step
A principal replies within one business day.
Or write to [email protected] · call (888) 560-5852
A qualified call: every criterion met, and the owner said yes to the meeting, calibrated to the mandate. The floor for your mandate is agreed before signing and reported weekly.