👉 Watch the full video here: Vetsure & Lupa on CMA
Vetsure is a buying group and support network for independent veterinary practices - providing purchasing power, pet health plan administration, and pet insurance services. Florence Page is Head of Business Development at Vetsure and a former vet, currently working closely with practices navigating CMA changes on the ground.
Her headline message: don't panic. The remedies are addressable - but they require action now.
1. Pet Health Plans: How to Structure Yours for Retention and Compliance
The challenge: Practices without a health plan are missing recurring revenue and a proven client retention tool. Those with one may need to evolve it.
- No plan yet? Start simple: vaccines, parasiticides, annual health check. Build from there once clients are enrolled.
- Already running one? Consider adding inclusive consult tiers, dental bolt-ons, or life-stage-specific plans. With CMA pressure on medicine margins, shifting more of your plan's to include services - consultations, health checks, diagnostics is a strategic consideration.
- Stay compliant. A plan must have a defined value to stay the right side of FCA regulation - it cannot carry the open-ended liability of an insurance product.
How Lupa helps: Whether you run one plan or several tailored to different client demographics, Lupa keeps it manageable. Discounts apply automatically at the point of care, stay on top of inventory, and your team always know what's been used and what’s owed.
2. Medicine Pricing Strategy: How to Protect Margins Under CMA Pressure
The challenge: Around 30% of small animal practice revenue comes from medicine sales. A proposed £16 prescription fee cap and mandatory online pharmacy signposting will put direct pressure on that income.
- Know your actual net cost. Not list price - net-net-net after wholesaler discounts, rebates, and buying group fees. Price from there.
- Switch to margin-based pricing. Target a specific margin per product category rather than a blanket list price markup. Higher margins on cheaper drugs; lower on expensive ones. This gives real visibility on profitability.
- Brief your team on pricing. Vets and nurses who don't understand the model can't defend it. Help them see where revenue goes - and strip apologetic language from cost conversations entirely.
How Lupa helps: Lupa makes it straightforward to input and track your true net costs - including rebates and wholesaler discounts. No guesswork, no hours lost in spreadsheets.
👉 Watch the full video here: Vetsure & Lupa on CMA
3. Client Communication and Reputation: How to Build Trust in a Transparent Market
The challenge: Pet owners are shopping around more. Location and word of mouth are no longer enough, and CMA-driven media coverage has put independent practices under scrutiny.
- Define and communicate your USP - team expertise, equipment, culture. If you have a specialist interest or a CT scanner, say so.
- Use behind-the-scenes content. A dental walkthrough or owner-present induction shows the skill and care behind a treatment - and makes the cost easier to justify.
- Back it up internally. Your external brand is only as strong as your team culture. Protect staff one-to-ones. Support new graduates - they're navigating a harder environment than previous cohorts did.
How Lupa helps: A practice's reputation is built on the experience your team is able to deliver. Lupa's platform, from AI scribe, automated medical summaries to numerous integrations, is built to help your team perform their best. When your team has the space to focus on the patient in front of them, it will show in the service.
Ready to Act?
Lupa and Vetsure are both here to help - whether that's PMS capability, health plan administration, buying group support, or a conversation about how the changes will affect your practice.
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