Q & M DENTAL: Sinks its Teeth into Asia’s Burgeoning Dental Market

Dr Ng Chin Siau, founder and Group CEO of Q & M Dental Group. NextInsight file photo

Dr Ng Chin Siau’s rejection from medical school more than two decades ago turned out to be a blessing in disguise.

The aspiring doctor settled for a place in the National University of Singapore’s Faculty of Dentistry instead.

Graduating with a Bachelor of Dental Surgery degree in 1992, the founder and Group Chief Executive Officer of Q & M Dental Group now manages 76 dental clinics and three dental hospitals across Asia.

“My first choice was to study medicine, but I got rejected, so my dentistry professor took me in. I am very lucky to be where I am right now,” Ng recalled with a smile.

After graduation, Ng spent two years with the Institute of Dental Health before going into private practice in Bukit Batok, in western Singapore. In November 1996, he bought over the practice and set up his first Q & M Dental clinic.

The Group now has 64 dental outlets, including clinics operating under other names, and four aesthetic medical clinics in Singapore.

It has a pool of about 180 dentists, including 30 to 40 specialists, in the city-state. It also operates four dental clinics and three dental hospitals in China, as well as eight outlets in Malaysia.

Q & M Dental Group is equipped with advanced technology such as dental laser for surgery, treatment of gum disease as well as for plaque removal. Photo: CompanyNg, the eldest of four sisters and two brothers, tries to teach his children what it means to give, to have a gracious and generous spirit. “I hope they will come to understand these two words – 舍得 (she de), and gain as much as I have from this principle,” he said.

Q & M plays a big part in the lives of the Ng family. His wife, Foo Siew Jiuan, is the General Manager, while his sister, Melanie Ng, is the Group Financial Controller. Another sister is also an area manager for a handful of clinics.

“Being related to the Group CEO and working in the company is not easy,” Ng admitted. “There are all these issues about cronyism. If they do not perform better than other employees, they are in trouble.”

And all family members employed by the company must lead by example.

“Last year, I took more than my annual leave entitlement to help my daughter look for a university in London, so my wife cut my salary for the month by half,” he said with a laugh. His 19-year-old is currently pursuing a dentistry degree in the UK.

Looking ahead, Q & M is focused on China and Singapore, and to a lesser extent, Malaysia, Ng said.

China’s growth outlook is rosy, thanks to demographic trends, including its 1.4 billion population. Awareness of dental health is also less than 10% in the country, compared to 40%-50% in Singapore.

Opportunities to hire qualified staff also abound, with more than 130,000 employable dentists, as compared with only 1,600 in Singapore, he noted.

“China is a very big magnet for us,” added Ng, who is a fan of the TV reality talent show “The Voice of China” or 中国好声音 (zhong guo hao sheng yin).

For those reasons, the country has attracted an influx of funds seeking quality healthcare projects, particularly in first-tier cities, causing valuations to skyrocket.

“People are willing to pay 20 to 30 times PE for unlisted entities, which is way too much. There’s a lot of money chasing a limited number of projects,” Ng said.

The company paid a price-earnings (PE) ratio of only 10 to 15 times for its two recent acquisitions in China – 51 per cent-owned dental materials manufacturer Qinhuangdao Aidite High Technical Ceramic Co, and 60 per cent-owned Aoxin Stomatology Group, which runs a chain of dental clinics and hospitals.

As a result, Q & M has switched its attention to government-run dental hospitals in provincial cities from private hospitals in locations like Beijing or Shanghai.

“Tier 1 cities attract the most bidders, including those from US, Taiwan, Germany. In Tier 2 and 3 cities, the local governments are more receptive to our presence, and we can explore opportunities to privatise a provincial dental hospital with share ownership,” he added. Its focus on hospitals vis-à-vis medical clinics is also due to demand.

“When the Chinese fall sick, most prefer to seek treatment at public hospitals to small clinics. Most of these government hospitals offer national medical insurance coverage,” Ng said.

“The patients that visit these public hospitals are also more willing to pay for aesthetic treatments such as braces, teeth whitening, implants and gum surgery, which offer higher margins.”

Q & M plans to eventually spin off its two Chinese entities, but has not finalised the listing location. “We now have strong joint venture partners in China, and that allows us to be more confident about getting bigger deals in the market,” he added.

Across the Causeway, Q & M is adopting a wait-and-see attitude due to the sliding Malaysian currency.

The ringgit is Asia’s worst performing currency this year, hit by slowing Chinese growth, slumping commodity prices and a looming US interest rate hike. It has fallen more than 20% in the year thus far, after touching a 17-year low of 4.48 to the US dollar in the third quarter.

“With the weak ringgit, we would prefer to spend more of our time in China. We need the ringgit to stabilise first – our operating costs are rising due to the weakening of the currency. Many businesses are also adjusting to the new GST policy,” he said.

Q & M may be able to play a part in spurring the consolidation of Malaysia’s fragmented dental market.

“There’s no listed company in Malaysia big enough to consolidate the individual dentists, like what we did in Singapore, so maybe Q & M can perform that role there too.”

Meanwhile, Q & M faces the challenge of hiring qualified dental assistants, a factor that has curbed its expansion in some markets.

“We do not have a problem employing dentists. Dental assistants are harder to come by, because of the specialised skills that are required, and more importantly, the tight labour market in Singapore. That’s slowing our growth.”

Over the long term, Q & M aims to be to Asia’s dentistry market what German automaker Volkswagen has been to the car industry, said Ng, who has a passion for cars.

He drives a white Porsche 911, while his wife has a brown Volkswagen Passat CC.

“Volkswagen owns high-end and low-end brands in its stable. At Q & M, we also want to offer a full range of dental services – from high to low-end, for all the people.”

• Barring any unforeseen circumstances, there are no significant changes in the trends and competitive conditions of the industry in which the Group operates.
• There are no major known factors or events that may adversely affect the Group in the next reporting period and the next 12 months.
• The Group is continuously looking for opportunities to expand its business through acquisitions, joint ventures or strategic alliances with parties who create synergistic value with its existing businesses in Singapore, PRC and Malaysia.