{"podcast":{"title":"The Optometry Success Podcast","slug":"the-optometry-success-podcast-7697299","podcast_index_feed_id":7697299,"rss_url":"https://feeds.libsyn.com/604445/rss","website_url":"https://sites.libsyn.com/604445","image_url":"https://static.libsyn.com/p/assets/c/6/4/1/c641fc6f86f21f91d959afa2a1bf1c87/optometry-20260211-867orl952n.jpg","author":"Adam Cmejla, CFP and Chad Fleming, OD, FAAO","episode_count":27,"summary":"The Optometry Success Podcast helps private-practice optometrists build profitable, sustainable businesses with clarity and confidence. Hosted by Adam Cmejla, CFP—a financial planner and CFO to ODs nationwide—and Chad Fleming, OD, FAAO—a multi-location practice owner with decades of hands-on experience—each 20-minute episode delivers practical strategies and actionable insights you can apply right away. From leadership and financials to team culture, operations, and growth, this is your weekly dose of real-world advice for real-world practice owners. New episodes every Wednesday.","last_synced_at":"2026-07-22T22:19:45.967404+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-optometry-success-podcast-7697299"},"episode":{"title":"Buying Charts and Cold Starts","slug":"buying-charts-and-cold-starts","published_at":"2026-07-08T10:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-optometry-success-podcast-7697299/buying-charts-and-cold-starts","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-optometry-success-podcast-7697299","url":"https://b8846a06-cd6c-43f8-bcd6-1015f24b042a.libsyn.com/buying-charts-and-cold-starts","audio_url":"https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/b8846a06-cd6c-43f8-bcd6-1015f24b042a/TOSP_Charts_Scale_final.mp3?dest-id=5262880","summary":"In this episode, we respond to a listener question from a doctor preparing to open a cold start practice. The listener asks whether there is value in buying patient charts from a nearby retiring doctor, especially if doing so could help the doctor retire sooner and create an opportunity to reach out to those patients. Adam and Chad discuss why charts alone usually have very little value unless there is a clear transition strategy behind them. They talk through what a collaborative handoff could look like, including the retiring doctor actively introducing patients, emphasizing continuity of care, and helping pre-appoint patients into the new practice. They also discuss the second part of the listener's question: whether it makes sense to purchase the retiring doctor's frame inventory. Chad shares why he would be cautious about buying existing inventory, especially for a cold start, and why new practice owners need to be careful with early capital decisions. The conversation wraps with a broader reminder that cold start owners should measure carefully, ask good questions, and understand that the cost of a wrong decision is often much higher before consistent revenue is coming in. Have a question for us to address in a future episode? Submit it here ! Resources: Learn more about Partners in Profit Download the Practice Owner's Financial Toolkit 20/20 Money Ultimate Financial Success Masterclass OD Mastermind Interest Form Check out Adam's new book: How to Buy an Optometry Practice Subscribe on Apple Podcasts: https://shorturl.at/Fq1Ro Subscribe on Spotify: https://shorturl.at/jCtsk","meta_description":"In this episode, we respond to a listener question from a doctor preparing to open a cold start practice. The listener asks whether there is value in buyi…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":1300,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-optometry-success-podcast-7697299/episodes/buying-charts-and-cold-starts/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-optometry-success-podcast-7697299/buying-charts-and-cold-starts.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}