The Bottom Line Pharmacy Podcast | Compounding Comeback: Infrastructure, Strategic Marketing, and Relationships Featuring Dr. Justin Clark, PharmD
Turning a struggling pharmacy around…it takes strategy, infrastructure, and most importantly, strong 👏 relationships 👏!
That’s the focus for this week’s episode of The Bottom Line Pharmacy Podcast!
This week, Scotty Sykes, CPA, CFP® and Bonnie Bond, CPA sit down with Dr. Justin Clark, PharmD, RPh, BCSCP, and Owner of Val Vista Pharmacy in Arizona, to discuss:
- Journey from pharmacist to pharmacy owner
- The role of infrastructure and strategic marketing
- Turning a struggling pharmacy into a compounding success
- The importance of customer service and communication in building trust
Join the discussion with us!
The Bottom Line Pharmacy Podcast is your regular dose of pharmacy CPA advice to fuel your bottom line, featuring pharmacists, key vendors, and other innovators.
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More resources on this topic:
Podcast – Making Data Work for Your Pharmacy
Podcast – Driving Independent Pharmacy Profitability in 2025
Podcast – Pharmacy Insights – 2025 Tax Changes, Master The Margin, and Industry Changes
If you prefer to read this content, the video transcript is below:
Scotty Sykes, CPA, CFP®: Welcome everybody to another episode of the Bottom Line Pharmacy Podcast. We’re happy to have Justin Clark with Valvista Pharmacy in Arizona with us today. So Justin, welcome to the podcast. Glad to have you and looking forward to hearing more about your pharmacy. So welcome.
Justin Clark, PharmD: I appreciate you having me on. I’m excited for the opportunity.
Bonnie Bond, CPA: Thank you. Yeah.
Scotty Sykes, CPA, CFP®: So, Justin’s already a superstar around here, but before we get to that, Justin, tell us a little bit about your pharmacy and what you’ve been able to do, how you’ve been able to grow it to where you are today and give our listeners a little insight into that.
Justin Clark, PharmD: Yeah. So, I’ve been a pharmacist since 2009. I ended up getting into independent compounding pharmacy in 2012. And then, through a job change in 2021, I ended up taking over a store that was floundering and there was an opportunity to purchase it. I saw the potential in it. And, in August 22, me and my wife bought the pharmacy. We had some strategic planning around changing the name and ideas on how to grow it. But first we had to do a remodel because we weren’t up to speed on 795 and 800. We only had one compounding room, so we needed to add a second one. So took about six months to kind of get our feet under ourselves and then get the name changed. And then was, what are we gonna do for a remodel? So, 2023 was all about a remodel and getting us that second USP 100 room. And during that time, it wasn’t about growth. It’s just, we got to make sure our infrastructure is in place and that everything we do is done in a controlled growth manner. So, once the remodel ended at the end of 2023, then it was like, okay, we got our infrastructure in place. We have enough people in place. How do we set ourselves up to start marketing to doctors? And that was what 2024 was about is how do we grow in a effective manner that is controlled and now that we have the infrastructure and the staffing in place. And that’s when I had heard about Atrium24 and Dotti’s CRM system, which I know you guys have had on the podcast in the past. And through their CRM system and learning the processes that they have put in place in their learning modules was , allowed me to kind of build the sales program that basically it’s if you walk into a doctor’s office, no matter what office it is, are you ready and prepared for what questions might come? Do you have handouts for those offices or that type of office? So, kind of building out the sales program. And then once I felt like I was comfortable and ready to go out, and this took about you know, a couple of weeks to learn and what do I need for resources and paper to go into an office? Then it was like, okay, how do I, where do I find the offices, I want to go to? And that’s when you start digging through, I dug through our software system, finding doctors that were sending us compounds, but maybe it was only like five to 10 a month. What more can I get from them? If they’re sending me five or 10, are they sending stuff elsewhere? Where I’m only getting that small amount. So, I kind of targeted those offices and kind of knew who we were, but I knew what compounding was and that was kind of how do we get in the door? I just did some cold call emails to the offices. I tried to get emails from them saying, I’d like to come in and visit. Tell me when a good time is. I’ll provide lunch or whatever. I sent out about 45 emails, and I had 25 lunches over the next four months. So, I had a pretty good response rate.
Bonnie Bond, CPA: That’s good. Yeah.
Justin Clark, PharmD: And again, it’s all about knowing what the office needs and also strategizing who we go to. I don’t want to go for cheap generics. As we know, reimbursement rates are pretty poor. So, it’s like, how do I find those high margin products? And that’s where compounding, we’ve been compounding for ever since the pharmacy was open. So, it was kind of our bread and butter and just getting in the door, seeing where they’re sending their prescriptions, what we can do to earn their business, how to gain that business, any questions that they had, I was that face of the pharmacy. So, I’m the one that’s going in. I was not another sales rep. It was just me. At that point we were doing probably 60 to 70 compounds a day. So, we had a good volume, but knew that we had potential for more. And because I was the face of the pharmacy, I’m also the person that’s doing the sales. Like I’m now the point of contact. It wasn’t another sales rep that you know, may not have an answer, may not have the right price, might need to go back to the pharmacy to answer questions. So I’ve now become basically that communication between the office and the pharmacy, even still to this day. So that was last, basically February through June, I was running those, trying to get into those offices. And during that time, we also had a big opportunity with 503B pharmacies that came on board with being able to, 503A’s being able to sell directly, or sorry, 503B’s being able to sell directly to 503A pharmacies. And once I came up with that, when that opportunity arose, I kind of jumped on it and was like, this is an easy way to add sterile products. Everyone’s talking about the GLPs right now and the option to bring those in, just like I would be bringing in if it was coming from a secondary wholesaler or your primary wholesaler where you’re just buying the product and reselling it at a upcharge. And also, during that time, we also took over the suite next door to us because we had grown so much in 2023 that we were preparing, okay, if we keep growing at this rate, we’re going to need more space. So, 2024 was this growth with the 503Bs and some marketing, but also, we have a suite next door to us, where we’re expanding into the projects almost complete at this point, but. So that’s kind of the steps that it’s took to get to where we were. The 503B products have really grown a lot. know, initially I knew I could sell a good amount just because we have some competitors that are selling it. As long as I could bring it in at a price that I’d be able to be competitively priced to the patient. And that’s kind of been the goal was just be competitive and the prescriptions will come once you kind of spread the word. So, during those marketing lunches, at the same time as I was doing those, now all of a we had GLPs as an option, because that’s what the questions were. It’s like, do you have this? Do you have that? it’s like, so yeah.
Bonnie Bond, CPA: Man, that’s a hot area right
Scotty Sykes, CPA, CFP®: You got that right.
Justin Clark, PharmD: Yeah, so I mean, it was a slow slow go at the beginning. March, I only probably had like one option, first like Semaglutide, maybe two options. And then as more things rolled out and more vendors came online, just vetting them out, make sure that they’re in compliance with CGMP and they’ve had an FDA inspection. they have, did they get through it? Did they have a 483 that’s still out there? So, a lot of that compliance stuff and legal stuff that goes on in those five with three B’s is a big part of this too, and in vetting. And then also making sure they’re licensed in your state. Like you can’t just buy a product that’s from a pharmacy that’s not licensed in your state. So, you know, some of that vetting stuff had gotten done before we purchased. And then over time we just started adding more items as they became available.
Bonnie Bond, CPA: Right.
Justin Clark, PharmD: So, I think now we have three different strengths of Semaglutide and five different vial sizes and then two different strengths of Trizepatide. So it’s just adding things on and the bigger the vial, the more cost effective it is to the patient from like a milligram per strength or milligram per ml. that’s kind of been the growth thus far.
Scotty Sykes, CPA, CFP®: Well, it’s a it’s an awesome story. And I love how, you know, you got started, you focused on capacity, on the infrastructure, building it out. I’m really interested in the email. You know, how are you working these emails to get the response that you did? Because it’s easy to just can an email. I mean, I get tons of them from third parties all the time here.
Bonnie Bond, CPA: Man, those just go right in the trash.
Scotty Sykes, CPA, CFP®: A of it is trash. But you had to have done some research or something to know what you’re hitting on and to get their attention.
Justin Clark, PharmD: I mean, luckily it was offices that knew who we were. It wasn’t really a cold call. It was like, hey, I want to come in and meet you. You know, initially, you know, probably 20 out of the 25, they had already called into the pharmacy. They kind of knew who I was, but it was just like a not, the relationship wasn’t quite built yet. And it’s just trying to build a relationship. And…
Scotty Sykes, CPA, CFP®: Yeah. Gotcha.
Bonnie Bond, CPA: And you used food, know, food does work with me. If anybody wants to send me an email and discuss something over lunch, I may not send it directly to my junk folder, too. I’d give it a second thought.
Justin Clark, PharmD: Yeah, I mean…With, you know, the title is like Val Vista pharmacy intro or introduction and then, you know, Hey, I’d like to come in and meet your staff and get to know you guys better, understand your practice better, you know, be available for any questions, kind of go over what services we offer. And more concise where it’s like, and then it’s like, you end it with like, let me know when you’re available. It’s not like, let me know if you’re interested. It’s like…
Bonnie Bond, CPA: Yeah.
Scotty Sykes, CPA, CFP®: Lunch on me…
Justin Clark, PharmD: Let me know when you’re available. That way you’re, it’s kind of more to the point. I think I watched a few Instagram videos or something that have like how to close a deal or, and it’s not closing the deal, but it’s trying to get the deal on the table. So, you’re just trying to make sure that you’re, you know, closing it in a way where you are expecting a response.
Scotty Sykes, CPA, CFP®: Well, I like that. And another thing that intrigued me is that the 503B and that coming up when it did, I imagine was great timing. You know, you’re starting the business, you’re trying to grow the business. So how did you, you were an early adopter, clearly jumping into this and there’s always going to be opportunities, maybe not in this space, but other areas in pharmacy down the road. So, the listeners here, how did you make the decision as an early adopter that, hey, this is what I want to do. I want to go in and do this. Because we have some now, I mean, I’m hearing clients now or whoever is just now looking at this 503B stuff. So how did you go determine that this is an opportunity for you and you jumped in on it? So, what’s your process there?
Justin Clark, PharmD: Yeah. So, January 24, we were proposed to take over the suite next door. And our plan was to actually build a sterile room, knowing that we keep getting all these calls for GLPs and we hear how it’s like this hottest item. And then, a little background on me and my previous job, I was a sterile compounding pharmacist. So, I am actually a board certified sterile compounding pharmacist, one of very few in the state of Arizona. So, like I’m very comfortable in the sterile space where a lot of pharmacists may not because they just don’t have the experience. So, I’m like, all right, we’re going to consider building a sterile room so that we can kind of get on this. But it was going to be months. I mean, we’re still not even finished the project now and we’re a year later. And that’s not even doing sterile. That’s just adding onto our non-sterile. So, it’s like, how do we get into this game quicker? And that’s when, like literally at the same, like within the next month is when the 503B thing came up. And I’m like, well, this is an easy answer. I can just buy and sell. I don’t have to build all this stuff. And, so we were already trying to get into it. We’re just trying to find a way. There was an opportunity is like, yeah, I’m going to jump on this right away. And then, I mean, offices were already calling about it. We’re already asking. So, like I already had probably at least a dozen providers that were looking for it as an alternative option to where they were currently getting it. There’s other compounders in the area that do sterile, between their growth has been so exponential with the GLPs that it’s hurt their customer service and their turnaround time. So, then just looking for another option is all these providers were looking for. And now all of sudden I have an opportunity. So, it was kind of like a no-brainer. You know, the first, the first bill was like, man, can I afford this? But I’m like, it’ll come back. You have to trust it. You’re going to spend $10,000 or $15,000 on your first order. You’ve got to kind of lean into it and make sure you’re going to do something to get that return on investment.
Scotty Sykes, CPA, CFP®: And how did you get comfortable with the 503B model itself? Cause I know, you know, there’s some maybe legal issues or there are some questions to begin with. I mean, were you working with any attorneys to help sort through that or any third parties or you don’t have to give names or anything, but I’m just kind of want to walk through that process. I mean, because with an FDA guidance that’s out there with being able to sell a 503B product to a 503A, I felt comfortable with the guidance. And then I’m on a few Facebook groups that had kind of some commentary going on at that time that made it seem like it was no issues from a state standpoint, especially here in Arizona. As long as the pharmacy was licensed to distribute to Arizona, then we would be good. My biggest question initially is like, okay, well, it’s a 503B product. Can I just wholesale it through my pharmacy to a provider’s office without having a prescription? And that was the one question I had, and it got pretty concise answers back when I asked was like, no, you’re a 503A, you still have to have a patient specific prescription for it. So that was my biggest thing. Cause if I, could just move 10 vials to an office because that’s what they wanted, then you know, I could just be, but that’s not the case. So, you know, patient specific prescription, just like any other compounded product, because we are a 503A pharmacy. but I mean, you know, over the last 10 months, I mean, we’ve had a, one of our suppliers got an FDA inspection. They, shut down for some time to get through that inspection. So, you kind of just, I mean, I basically have three vendors I can choose, pick and choose. And right now it’s just like what comes down to like, what’s the easiest to order? Where’s the pricing at and you know, how…are they going to be able to get, get it to me in a reasonable time? So, through the different, you know, I order probably a couple of times a month. So, it’s like, you kind of just learn who’s the easiest to work with. The pricing is all about competitive, pretty comparable with the three vendors I use. So, it’s just a matter of being comfortable with who you’re buying from.
Scotty Sykes, CPA, CFP®: What do you foresee in this space for 2025? Is it gonna shut down in the next couple months or if you’re a pharmacy out there listening in and you’re not in it, what would you tell that pharmacy?
Justin Clark, PharmD: I mean Trizepatide is kind of questionable right now just because there’s a lawsuit out there. The FDA says we’re good like because we’re buying a 503B product we’re able to sell that till March 19th. But as long as there’s still a legal lawsuit going on we’re able to potentially continue past that if there’s no decision on that lawsuit. So, I’m optimistic. I’m always an optimistic person so I’m gonna be, you know, going right till March 19th until I get to it. And then, but I think if, if Trizepatide shuts down, then I think a lot of providers are just going to switch over to Semaglutide just because, cost from a brand name product to a compound, it is pretty drastic. And, you know, I believe Trizepatide’s a better product, but I think the providers are also cost conscious to the patient and trying to get them an opportunity or an option that’s not hypothetically off shortage because as a lot of pharmacies probably know, there’s limitations to what you can purchase right now of Trizepatide products that are brand names. I know I wouldn’t be able to fill all the prescriptions I fill if I had to get brand name products. So guess I’m optimistic. I think if Trizepatide ends, it’s definitely gonna switch over to Semaglutide or a good portion of it…
Bonnie Bond, CPA: It’ll be something.
Justin Clark, PharmD: But I know that Semaglutide they’re trying to make it demonstrably difficult to compound. So, know, big pharma is trying to stop that in any way possible too. So, I don’t know. There’s always going to be the next thing during COVID, compounded Ivermectin and all the drugs that for the symptoms and then kind of rolls into the next thing.
Bonnie Bond, CPA: That’s what we say all the time. I mean, there’s always something new with you guys in this industry and you just have to kind of roll with it and stay on top of it and just go to the next thing. I mean, it’s, you’ve got to figure it out.
Justin Clark, PharmD: It’s COVID test and you. And we’ve kind of diversified those 503B products too. We don’t just have GLPs. We’ve got, mixed tri-mix products. We’ve got IV vitamins. We’ve got, just B12 injection. Like, so it’s also trying to know what other offices have. So, you’re not only pigeonholed in one thing. So, anytime I see other opportunities with the 503B pre products that offices asked for, I’m also bringing those products in. And so, I think we’ve got about 25 items now. Like it’s not just seven SKUs of GLPs.
Scotty Sykes, CPA, CFP®: And you got to the pace of change is only going to increase. things changing is not going to slow down. So, there’s always going to be new stuff and it’s going to be coming quick, you know, with AI and the technology and the R&D behind that. Lord only knows, but…
Bonnie Bond, CPA: It’s refreshing to hear all these things that you’ve done in a short period of time too and how you’re able to adapt to change because I mean, believe it or not, we still work with some pharmacies who, we talk to some at some shows that are still just filling scripts basically. And I just don’t understand how you can do that at this point. You’ve got to get into another space.
Justin Clark, PharmD: And, and going back to when I started meeting with these offices, I didn’t have GLPs as my, in my arsenal at the time. So, I was talking about compounds. So, I’m going in there talking about compounds and they’re asking about GLPs. I’m like, I don’t have them yet. And then all of sudden I do. And then it’s like, okay, now we’re going to start switching. Oh, it’s all communication via email. don’t, I don’t, I don’t even visit these offices. They have questions. They email me now. They know I’m accessible. They’ve, as they started transitioning some stuff, they saw the customer service we offer and the turnaround times and that goes a long ways. So now I was targeting compound. So, in this period of a year, we’ve actually doubled our compounding business on top of the growth in the 503B space. So, we’ve seen a double in our prescription volume in 12 months, just because it’s so then you’re talking about, I talked about initially the infrastructure and controlled growth. It’s like when June hit, and I started seeing the growth like I stopped going out. I couldn’t, I’m like, we’ve got enough, and it continues to grow from there. So now it’s like, we’re adding, I mean, even the last three months we’ve added three people and I’m out of space square footage wise. I still, I’m just ready for this other suite to be available so we can, I mean, we’re, yeah, we’re making it work, but it’s, definitely tight.
Scotty Sykes, CPA, CFP®: Good problems to have right there. Yeah, I like that. So, the kind of underlying message there is the relationships with the providers and the patients. I mean, once you have these patients, you probably have these patients for life. I mean, they’re not going to, once they’ve been serviced by you guys, they’re not going to go anywhere else.
Justin Clark, PharmD: Yeah, you treat them right. You give them the customer service here, you communicate with them. Like that will go a long way. And my big thing going into these offices was like our turnaround time is same day or next day on all compounds. And, and we try to make sure we keep it at that because that’s the difference maker between our competitors. And even though we’ve doubled our compounding, you know, we’ve been able to maintain that through the holidays got a little rough where we are maybe 24 to 48 hours, but we’ve come back now and it’s back to 24 hours. But if you keep growing, you ought to add more people. So, it’s always about controlling that growth and not asking for too much when you know you may not be able to handle it because you’re not going to be able to stand by your words of what your promise times are if you don’t have the infrastructure in place. But back to your relationships, like you said, initially I probably had maybe five providers in my phone that were pretty top providers. Since then, I probably have 30, 40 that text me on a regular basis now. And don’t be afraid to give out your cell phone. It’s building a relationship. Even if it’s a question like, hey, can you make this rectal ointment? Yeah. What are you trying to treat? What are we trying to accomplish here? Pain cream, someone’s got a knee pain, and they don’t want to put them on a pain med, they want to do something topical. Like just being a resource and it’s, a matter of a text message goes a long way too. We even built providers into our computer system where we text them with any issues on prescriptions. We don’t call the office, we’ll text them. No one wants the phone burden either party, the office or us. So, it’s just building that relationship, so it becomes like a two-way communication and them having the trust once they’ve kind of done some business with you, having trust in you to reach out whenever there’s any questions.
Scotty Sykes, CPA, CFP®: That’s awesome.
Bonnie Bond, CPA: Yeah, it’s a great story.
Scotty Sykes, CPA, CFP: It’s a successful startup, Bonnie.
Bonnie Bond, CPA: It is, I love to see those. We have a lot of good, great, successful startups, but then we have a lot that really struggle. So, there’s, and you can start to see the reasons why when you listen to the stories, you look at what some people do and some people don’t do. Yeah, yeah. Yeah.
Scotty Sykes, CPA, CFP®: That’s why I try to dig in, like, what are you doing with different hair and length? Well, Justin, thanks for getting on. Congratulations on all your success so far. We look forward to seeing that success continue and hopefully playing a little part in that. But appreciate you getting on and appreciate our listeners listening in. Thanks everybody.
Bonnie Bond, CPA: Absolutely.
Justin Clark, PharmD: Yeah, appreciate it. Yeah, problem. Take care.
