Healthia Limited is a publicly listed business aiming to grow to be one of Australia’s major allied health firms that offers podiatry, physiotherapy and related services. The company is listed on the Australian Stock Exchange with the opening of a $26.8 million Initial Public Offer (IPO). Healthia is the holding corporation which is the owner of and manages over 70 MyFootDr podiatry clinics all around Australia. Additionally they own the foot orthotics laboratory, iOrthotics and have a 50 per cent stake of DBS Medical which supplies healthcare products. The Initial public offering proceeds were used to finance buying of more podiatry practices and some physiotherapy and hand therapy clinics. They feel that Australia’s highly fragmented allied health market provides a business opportunity for them to provide integrated solutions in order to meet the need for physiotherapy and podiatry services because the population will become more aged. Healthia expect to achieve this by helping clinicians decrease administrative worries of their practices. The vertically bundled firms including iOrthotics and DBS Medical is going to be useful to drive purchasing synergies, and also to enhance the procedures of current practices, generating cost savings through the increased size and enhance practice operations.
One of the leaders of MyFootDr, Greg Dower, was a guest on PodChatLive, the podiatry live show. Greg is currently the Chief Business Development Officer at MyFootDr. Greg is the podiatrist for the Australian cricket team and is also the lead in the Elvis tribute music group called the Blue Cats. This particular reference to Elvis has received Greg a great deal of interest in the business press associated with the Initial public offering of Healthia. In the PodChatLive live, Greg talked to the hosts about his path coming from being a sole podiatrist to co-owning a chain of over 50 podiatry clinics (which used over 100 podiatrists) before the IPO and further expansion. He discussed the considerable guidance programme they've got for new graduates, and his work wiser and harder viewpoint. At the conclusion of the discussion he quickly showed us round his Graceland inspired dining room.