KOP Insiders: Andy Frankel, COO, Dermatology Partners

KOP Insiders delves into the stories of the people who make King of Prussia one of Pennsylvania’s most dynamic live-work-play-stay destinations. In depth interviews provide insight into the companies that make up our diverse business community and put a face to the individuals behind the business. In this edition, we are joined by Andy Frankel, COO at Dermatology Partners.

Can you tell us a little about your background and how it led you to become Co-Founder and COO of Dermatology Partners?

Dr. Daniel Shurman and I worked together at a previous dermatology group. We decided in 2012 that we would break away and start our own practice with a few simple principles, the first being to provide an environment in which each doctor could provide the very best care that they knew how and with great support. We also aim to use technology to leverage our doctors’ efforts so that they can put as much effort into direct medicine and away from other distractions as possible. And finally, to build a practice that would provide great patient care and could scale seamlessly.

We originally launched with one location in Sinking Spring, which is east of Reading. The model worked well, and we grew quickly and opened a location in Berks County because it was underserved by Dermatologists. Little by little we kept growing, opening new locations and eventually became a dominant force in Dermatology.

If you were to go to each of our offices, you would notice that each one is a little bit different because each provides services at a style and pace that are appropriate for the doctor — doing what they feel is best for their patients.

Since the pandemic, we’ve opened 10 new locations. Simultaneously, we were looking for a flagship location because many of our offices are in smaller, rural areas that are more in need of Dermatologists. We stumbled upon the Kremer Eye Center in King of Prussia when it went on the market, and we were able to get ourselves into that building in early 2021.

We are now at 22 locations and have 11 more mapped out that will take us a little further into Delaware, Southwest towards York, and into the center of the state. Our hope is to become the most significant statewide provider of Dermatology in the general Mid-Atlantic.

We are very excited to be in King of Prussia because of its profile and the beauty of the building we’re currently in. Even though we’re expanding quickly, we’re a very PA-centric company. Most of our doctors and staff are from around this area.

What motivated Dermatology Partners to establish their flagship office in KOP specifically?

I’ll quote the brochure we saw when we looked at the statistics of the building: “200,000 cars a day drive by that site.” You can see the building from 422, the entrance of the turnpike, from 76, from The Village of Valley Forge, from the KOP Mall. KOP as a whole is such an incredibly visible place where tens of thousands of people come to King of Prussia every day to shop, dine and work. As we continue to evolve, our brand message is, “we are here but we are also where you are.” We could find no better visibility for advertising than being in King of Prussia.
In your mind, what factors are contributing to the major growth we’re seeing in KOP’s healthcare scene?

Every major transit route in Southeast PA winds its way through King of Prussia. The name recognition that King of Prussia has is beyond compare. It’s known nationally. There’s great history and there are so many things to do. But I think above all, it’s the people. Everyone here is so supportive and there’s a real sense of community. Healthcare businesses have realized that you have to go where the people are. All of that is contributing to the growth we’re seeing today.

What makes KOP a good fit for your employees and company culture?

We are simply an inclusive company. We welcome all patients and have a very diverse workforce and try to be very intentional about our employees reflecting the communities we’re in. King of Prussia is a diverse community and we’re excited about that: it’s income-diverse, age-diverse, ethnically diverse, experientially diverse. We believe because of the growth of The Village at Valley Forge and the younger people in the area, that we’re going to draw a high-quality pool of staff.

What does the future look like for Dermatology Partners?

One of the things that attracted us to the building was that it has an ambulatory surgery center. We do a lot of skin cancer treatments here, particularly with a treatment called MOHS — in case you didn’t know, skin cancer is the most common cancer in humans. Some are deadly while others are benign and easy to treat, but when it comes to removing them, MOHS technique has about a 99.8 percent cure rate. We’ve always wanted to do that, which meant that we needed a high-quality surgery center, which acts as a draw when patients in the surrounding areas need that kind of treatment as well as a broader range of services. We have so much room to grow here.

About Dermatology Partners

Dermatology Partners has been dedicated to providing exceptional and leading-edge dermatology services to patients with its growing and talented team of medical practitioners. Dermatology Partners specializes in the detection and treatment of skin cancers and treats a full spectrum of diseases of the skin, hair and nails.
200 Mall Blvd. King of Prussia, PA 19406 | padermpartners.com