Oasis completes acquisition of Apex

The deal was completed for an undisclosed sum, the company said.

The acquisitions mean the company’s turnover will increase by 40 per cent from £160m to more than £225m. Now it will be providing dental care to more than three million patients on the NHS and privately, as well as specialist dental work.

As a result, too, of the acquisitions the network of practices has risen from 204 to 310 in just six weeks. Of these, xx are in Yorkshire.

Apex was founded seven years ago and had 31 practices across England, offering a variety of care options to patients. Its focus had been to deliver clinical excellence, both privately and on the NHS.

Oasis says it is already committed to working with the Department of Health to ensure better access to decent dental services. A number of NHS pilots are already being trialled within its existing practices.

Justin Ash, chief executive at Oasis Healthcare Group, said: “We are delighted to welcome the Apex to Oasis. Both companies share the same commitment to providing high quality, easily accessible dental care and have developed a patient-led culture.”

Mr Ash said adding both Apex and Smiles to the company’s portfolio rapidly transforms its size and scope. “It underlines the rapid progress we are making in building a strong, trusted and customer focused dental brand in a fragmented market. Our ambitions for growth do not stop here and we have a strong pipeline of acquisitions and new builds.”

Last September, Sir Stuart Rose was appointed as chairman of the Oasis board as part of its vision to create a consumer-focused chain of dental practices.

Apex Dental’s CEO, Ben Chaing, said he was pleased.

“Following initial discussions with the Oasis team, it soon became apparent that we shared the same vision for how the dental market should evolve,” he said. “By combining Apex’s dental practices with Oasis the group will be well placed to continue improving the breadth and quality of our service to patients with the benefit of an expanded network and an even stronger clinical support team.”