Dental Practice Sales & Transitions

Who We Are

Thank you for visiting the ADS South web site. Since 1984, Earl Douglas and his associates have served your practice transition, appraisal, associateship services, pre-retirement transition support and expert testimony needs. ADS South is known by its impeccable reputation as being fair, honest and effective in helping dentists plan and implement their transition strategies.

What We Do

ADS is literally composed of the best professionals in the transition field. We do not offer franchises to just anyone who wants to sell dental practices. All prospective members must pass review by our nomination committee and meet quality and experience requirements. To be admitted to ADS South, they must be voted upon by the entire ADS membership. ADS South members are subject to internal standards and peer review. We are serious about integrity, competence and quality.

Recently, our membership had a strategic planning session that indicated that our members would benefit from being part of the ADS brand, rather than being known as their separate individual company, thus the movement to be known collectively and individually as ADS. Now, when you see the ADS advertisements in Dental Economics, our monthly Dental Economics transition column, our many pages of classified advertising in Dental Economics, our national website, www.ADSTransitions.com, and other ADS South branding venues, you can associate us and our colleagues as part of the ADS South national organization which provides the highest quality transition services in the country.

by Earl M. Douglas, DDS, MBA, BVAL | Earl Douglas on Google Plus

Meet the ADS South Dental Practice Sales Team

Earl M. Douglas, DDS, MBA, BVAL

Earl Douglas is the founder of ADS South. Dr. Douglas earned his Doctor of Dental Surgery degree from the Baltimore College of Dental Surgery, Dental School, University of Maryland 1971. He practiced in the U.S. Army Dental Corps at Fort Benning, Georgia, from 1971 to 1974 and in Stuttgart, West Germany, from 1974 to 1977. Dr. Douglas was in private practice in Atlanta, Georgia, from 1978 through 1982. After the sale of his private practice in 1982, he began his career in practice transition consulting. He received his Master in Business Administration degree from Brenau College in 1984 and founded ADS South in the same year. Dr. Douglas was the founder of American Dental Sales, Inc., in 1996 and served as its first president. He is the author of cash flow analysis software used by professional brokers and lenders. He is also a contributing author for Dental Economics and has presented numerous seminars for Dental Economics and state dental associations. Dr. Douglas is a member of the Practice Valuation Study Group and The Institute of Business Appraisers.

Barry C. Farrell, MBA

Barry Farrell is not your ordinary, run of the mill MBA. He received his MBA from University of Chicago, Graduate School of Business where he focused on Finance, Strategic Management, and Entrepreneurship. His BS degree in Marketing from Indiana University, School of Business didn’t hurt either.

Since receiving his training, Barry has been in leadership roles in many important positions. He started out as a senior consultant with PricewaterhouseCoopers in Chicago. He moved on to join Career Education, where he managed a team that supported student finance operations, application development, and IT compliance for 84 secondary education schools across the US, Canada, and Europe.

He held the position of Senior Business Analyst at Heller Financial and led the development and implemented deployment of financial applications while based in England. There he worked with business partners including IBM, Cisco, and Apple to lead business requirements in four European countries.

That proved to us that Barry knew his way around a spreadsheet, but what really caught our attention was how Barry supported his brother, Brandon K. Farrell, DDS, in creating a group of four dental practices in Wilmington, North Carolina. Barry was the Co-Founder and President of Brush Dental Care and worked to create from the ground up that successful dental organization.

In his eighteen-year tenure at Bush Dental Care, Barry administered all aspects of the practice business operations. He was responsible for the acquisition of three practices and starting one other practice in the organization’s first six years of operation. He managed the twenty-five-employee company in the four offices in Southeastern North Carolina.

Barry’s leadership resulted in significant revenue growth and reduced overhead at each practice. He implemented a partnership model for associate dentists which resulted in long term employment relationships. Throughout his tenure, he thoroughly evaluated over twenty other potential practices to purchase. And Barry took the group to the goal of practically every group practice owner, the sale of the group, resulting in a significant return on the founders’ investment.

Now it’s your turn to take advantage of Barry’s skills in helping sellers prepare and transition their practice and to help the new dentist carefully evaluate their career options.

Chris Nunnally

Christopher W. Nunnally, J.D. joined the ADS team after a decade of work dedicated to advising dentists and doctors through the practice transition process. He graduated magna cum laude from East Carolina University in 2002, completed law studies at New York Law School in 2008, and joined the North Carolina Bar directly thereafter. Formerly in legal practice, he clerked for the late Honorable Federal Magistrate Judge David Daniel of the Eastern District of North Carolina, practiced as a litigator with Gaylord, McNally, Strickland, and Snyder, PLLC, and was the principal of Nunnally Law Offices, PLLC dedicated to dental practice transitions. Mr. Nunnally is well positioned to listen, understand, and advise our selling dentists about what will best position their practice for the market. He is particularly interested in helping buyers find the right community and fit for their professional goals. He maintains legal professional membership with the North Carolina Bar Association and the Eastern North Carolina Inn of Court.

Clayton C. Cummings, DDS

Clayton C. Cummings, DDS graduated from University of Tennessee, Memphis, College of Dentistry in 1987. He practiced general dentistry in group practice in Arkadelphia, AR from 1987 until 1990 when he moved to Nashville, purchasing a practice through Dr. Earl Douglas at ADS South, LLC, (then known as Professional Practice Consultants, Ltd.) Dr. Cummings has served his community on bank boards and by serving in dental missions both locally and abroad. Dr. Cummings has always been interested in the business side of dentistry as well as the clinical aspects. In addition to working with dentists as a member of ADS South, Dr. Cummings manages his own consulting firm in which he helps other dentists navigate their way through an ever-changing health care environment. Dr. Cummings serves transition needs for dentists in Tennessee, Arkansas, and Kentucky.

James J Howard, DMD

James Howard has joined the ADS South team as a transition consultant. Upon graduation from Rutgers University in 1972, Dr. Howard attended the University of Pennsylvania School of Dental Medicine, receiving both the Graduate Dental Scholarship and the Zeta Psi Clareth Scholarship. Graduating with a DMD degree in 1976, he served at Ft. Bragg, North Carolina, and remains as a Major in the US Army Retired Reserves. In 1980 Dr. Howard formed the Howard Dental Group in LaVale, Maryland, eventually expanding the group to three offices. He sold his practice through American Dental Sales and moved to Oak Island, North Carolina. Dr. Howard offers twenty years experience in multiple practice business operations to assist those who want to buy or sell a dental practice in the Southeast corridor from Maryland to Georgia.

Virginia Douglas

Virginia Douglas is the client liaison coordinator at ADS. Virginia graduated from the University of New Haven with a degree in business administration. She assists clients in every step of the process from the initial phone call or email until after the closing. Virginia is the friendly voice that gets things done and is always available to respond to any needs that clients may have in the transition process.

Testimonial from a Satistfied Dentist

"Over the past two years, I have worked with Jim Howard to purchase two dental practices and without his expertise in completing dental transitions and his willingness to go the extra mile for both the buyer and seller, it would not have been possible. One of Jim's greatest assets is his practical experience as a dentist because he understands the human element of what a selling and purchasing dentist go through when completing a transition. Jim utilizes this experience along with his integrity and fairness, to make the transitions beneficial for both parties. These attributes have made my experience working with him very positive and I look forward to working with him again in the future."

Barry Farrell, Brush Dental Care