Aspen Dental

**Aspen Dental Management, Inc.** (**ADMI**) is a dental support organization (DSO), a dental practice management corporation that provides business support and administrative services in the US. Its headquarters is in DeWitt, New York.

Concerns about Aspen Dental's alleged targeting of older, low-income earners with unnecessary and costly services by offering them a finance program without fully disclosing the terms has been investigated by the U. S. Senate committee on finance, Pennsylvania Attorney General's office, Frontline, in partnership with the Center for Public Integrity and *The New York Times*. In 2015, American Securities led Aspen's recapitalization in partnership with Ares Management, Sears Alliance and the existing management team.

## History

Aspen Dental Management, Inc. (ADMI), the Dental Support Organization that supports the Aspen Dental brand, was founded in 1998 by Robert Fontana, who is chief executive. Fontana completed business school in 1991 and worked at Upstate Dental in Syracuse, New York. ADMI's predecessor was founded in 1981 and supported dental practices in Upstate New York. It was a founding member of the Association of Dental Support Organizations (ADSO). After predecessor company Upstate Dental merged with East Coast Dental in December 1997, the resulting firm was launched in 1998 as Aspen Dental Management, Inc.

There were more than 50 Aspen Dental offices within five years of ADMI's establishment. By April 2007, there were 106 branded practices in Arizona, Connecticut, Indiana, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island. The company was initially headquartered in Salina, New York but moved to a new headquarters near Syracuse in DeWitt in 2006. The new headquarters includes a training center to cater to Aspen Dental employees and other firms' training events.

In 2010, Sears Alliance purchased Aspen Dental from Ares Management for about $500 million. By August 2010, private equity firms were bidding on Aspen Dental and Kool Smiles, the two largest national chains of dental offices in the United States. Financial consultant Tom Climo cautioned that private equity firms boost profits by pressuring dentists to work longer, which could lead to a deterioration in service.

By 2015, Aspen Dental offered services to about 550 franchised dental facilities.

## Client-base

Aspen's services are aimed at individuals who do not have an established dental routine or regular dental provider. In 2012, Fontana described a typical Aspen Dental patient as middle-aged and possibly struggling to afford their day-to-day expenses, or someone who sees dental work as "discretionary" and therefore may have an emergency dental issue arise. According to Fontana, Aspen's locations and marketing are aimed at providing services to those individuals.

## See also

**[boxcar] (Website, Technology & Software Development Division)**
ChargePoint | Ring
**Amazon (e-commerce division)**

 **[cendant]  (Real Estate & Hospitality Division)**

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**MIDSCALE Hotels**
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**Cendant DESTINATIONS**

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**[clothespins]  (Sears Retail Network; Physical Retail & Private Label Division)**
*Bookstores:* Borders
*Bridalwear/formalwear Stores:* David's Bridal | Gingiss Formalwear
*Clothing Stores:* Lands' End | Lucky Brand Jeans
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*Kaiser Permanente:* **Aspen Dental**
*Sears Fitness Network:* Planet Fitness
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**[omnimedia] (media division)**
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General Cinemas Corporation | Cinemark

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