Entering the German market strengthens Bergman Clinics’ position in Northwestern Europe.
Bergman Clinics is taking the next step in expanding its international position in plannable medical care. The company enters the German market, with the planned acquisition of six clinics in Germany, from the Capio healthcare chain, a subsidiary of the Ramsay Santé Group. This step follows a prior acquisition in Scandinavia and strengthens the company’s position in Northwestern Europe. The German clinics specialise in vascular surgery and eye care, and two of the six are regional hospitals. Bergman Clinics wants to achieve an international platform for highly specialised plannable medical care, through upscaling in Northwestern Europe.
The planned acquisition of Capio clinics gives Bergman Clinics access to the largest European healthcare market. Germany has a long history of plannable medical care via specialised clinics. However, the offer is very divided, which translates to consolidation opportunities and economies of scale. This acquisition is a significant step in Bergman Clinics’ growth strategy. With the addition of two regional hospitals for general medical care, with a focus on orthopaedic treatments, Bergman Clinics acquires the necessary licenses to expand further in Germany and add specialised clinics.
In Germany, the provision of high-quality, excellent patient-oriented treatments at a competitive price, once again takes centre stage for Bergman Clinics. The growing scale also enables Bergman Clinics to obtain synergy benefits. The German healthcare activities will also make it possible to compare results between various clinics, which will help to improve the healthcare within the entire group on an ongoing basis.
These six Capio clinics receive approximately 200,000 patients a year, roughly 180,000 of which are outpatient visits for plannable procedures related to vascular and eye surgeries. Twenty thousand patients receive regional clinical care. These six locations have 900 employees, 150 of whom are doctors. They have a combined capacity of 540 beds. Most of the clinics are in central Germany, and one clinic is in the south of Bavaria. Bergman Clinics has the ambition to allow these clinics to grow, where possible, utilising the knowledge, experience and methods that Bergman Clinics also employs at its other locations. As in the Netherlands, the main focus areas are movement care, eye care, vascular care, and appearance and skin care.
Hans van der Heijden, CEO of Bergman Clinics, is thrilled with the acquisition. ‘We started working on this project a year ago. The COVID-19 circumstances slowed down the process, but it is great that we can take this step now. Anyone who wants to hold a leading position in Northwestern Europe, in our market, must also have a foothold in Germany. With this acquisition, we give ourselves access to a potential with vast opportunities. Our employees in the Netherlands and Scandinavia can benefit from the knowledge and professionalism in Germany and, at the same time, we get to introduce our methods in the German clinics. Clients and patients are going to benefit from this: they will receive more and better treatment options at highly specialised clinics. What’s more, this bundling of forces also offers room to invest in technological innovations, digitalisation and training and education.’
We expect the transaction to close during the fourth quarter of 2020.
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