VSS Capital Partners, a private investment firm investing in the healthcare, information, business services and education industries, completed a growth investment in Podiatry Growth Partners, a podiatry practice management platform that operates a national network of regionally branded podiatry clinics.

Headquartered in St. Louis, PGP provides back-office support services that help independent podiatrists scale their businesses while relieving them of administrative burdens such as finance, accounting, billing, human resources and marketing. PGP’s podiatry practices offer a range of foot and ankle care services, including surgical treatment, custom orthotics and diagnostic services. With VSS’ investment, the company will continue to further expand its regional footprint through new physician partnerships across the U.S.

“We look forward to working with CEO David Weiss and his team, who bring strong physician practice operational expertise to the company,” Jeffrey Stevenson, managing partner of VSS, said. “We’re thrilled to provide PGP with VSS’ flexible capital resources, healthcare experience and guidance as they pursue the next chapter of their growth through regional and national acquisitions of complementary podiatry practices.”

Since 2006, the podiatry industry has demonstrated stability and sustained growth through multiple economic cycles, according to IBIS World.

Weiss leads the PGP team as CEO. He has health business acumen, including growing multi-site offices through strategic acquisitions, business development, and operational and legal experience.

“VSS’ extensive experience in building successful healthcare organizations in close partnership with management teams is well aligned with PGP’s physician-focused model,” Weiss said.

Weiss was previously senior vice president at EyeCare Partners, a national optometry and ophthalmology platform in the U.S.

“We believe there is a tremendous opportunity for PGP to execute on its growth plan as the industry remains highly fragmented, with 99% of the nation’s 11,000-plus podiatry clinics in the U.S. being independently owned,” Victoria Durand, an associate at VSS, said. “We’re excited to support PGP as it builds on its mission to provide podiatrists with attractive opportunities to grow their practice, so they can continue to focus on patient care while accessing many benefits of a larger group.”