Advanced Veterinary Care (AVC) opened its doors in Blaine, Minnesota, in 2014 and has grown steadily ever since – now a busy, four-and-a-half-doctor clinic known for its dedicated team and strong community ties. Behind the scenes, Practice Manager Corinne Yurich, a CVT with a deep background in veterinary business operations, has been the architect of AVC’s inventory processes from day one.
“I came into opening AVC with a decade of corporate experience and had developed inventory protocols for multiple hospitals,” says Corinne. “So when we launched, I built our inventory system from the ground up and kept it in excellent shape.”
And she was right. AVC had minimal stockouts, consistent ordering routines, and a solid 22% COGS. The only drawback was that the system was time-consuming and overly dependent on her.
Challenging the Status Quo
Corinne didn’t start using Inventory Ally because she needed a fix. She started because she was curious.
“I signed up for the free trial, but not because I thought we needed it. Honestly, I wanted to challenge it!” she says with a laugh.
Within three months, AVC’s shelves looked noticeably leaner. Within a year, the numbers told the full story:
- COGS dropped by over 5%, from 23-24% to 18-19%, saving over $70,000 annually – all while revenue grew by 8%
- Inventory on hand dropped by $130,000, freeing up significant working capital
- Improved turnover of high-cost inventory, reducing average in-hospital product velocity from 5.5 weeks to under 1.8 weeks
- Inventory time reduced from 7 hours to 2.5 hours per week
“These aren’t small numbers,” says Corinne. “Our owner was shocked. He didn’t think it was possible to do better than what we already had. We didn’t just exceed the benchmark – we redefined it.”
From One-Person Dependency to a Scalable System
Before Inventory Ally, Corinne was the only one who understood the full inventory picture. Any time away from the hospital meant a scramble to recover.
Now, AVC has a scalable, team-friendly process. With Inventory Ally’s intuitive dashboards and automated sheets, Corinne can delegate cycle counts to her lead CVT or support staff and even review inventory remotely while away from the practice.
“It’s been huge for work-life balance and has made our hospital more scalable,” she explains. “Anyone can do it. And with our PIMS and supplier integrations, it’s nearly foolproof.”
Trusting the Data
Corinne admits the hardest part wasn’t setup – it was letting go of manual habits. “If you don’t trust the system, you won’t see results,” she cautions. “Inventory Ally works if you let it work.”
And work it does. With Cornerstone, Vetcove and Covetrus integrations, AVC now tracks inventory levels – including hard-to-monitor white goods – with uncanny accuracy. “It still amazes me when Inventory Ally says I should have four boxes of gauze on hand – and I find almost precisely that many on the shelf.”
Corinne also uses the platform’s data-driven insights to optimize the formulary, which is especially important in a growing hospital where more providers bring more variables. “If a product hasn’t moved in a year, I can show the graph to our doctors and suggest removing it. That opens up shelf space for faster-moving items and prevents expired stock,” Corinne explains.
It’s also helped her stay ahead of price increases. “Sometimes things slip through the cracks,” she says. “Inventory Ally will flag them and show me if a product suddenly costs more. I can update my PIMS right away and make sure we’re not losing money.”
Reinvesting in People and Growth
With time saved and tens of thousands recaptured in inventory costs, Corinne and her leadership team finally had the resources to reinvest more meaningfully in their people.
“I used to spend 7 hours a week on inventory – now it’s 2.5. That finally gave me the time and bandwidth to focus on the team and our culture.”
She launched new team initiatives, including a wellness plan contest that boosted enrollments by 30%, and she reinvested the savings directly into staff raises well above the typical industry benchmark.
“As a privately owned clinic, being able to reward our team like that is huge. Inventory Ally made that possible,” she summarizes.
Final Word: “If You Think You’re Fine, Try It Anyway”
Corinne’s message to other practice leaders is simple: “If you think you have inventory figured out, you might be right – but you still might be missing something. Inventory Ally doesn’t just fix broken systems; it optimizes good ones.”
What started as a fun challenge turned into gaining a reliable partner and unlocking new potential. With stronger financials, a more empowered team, and systems that scale, Advanced Veterinary Care is now set up to grow with confidence.
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