Exceptional Physical Therapy - Exchange Physical Therapy

Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in health and wellness but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Jaclyn Fulop, Founder of Exchange Physical Therapy Group, located in Jersey City, NJ, USA.

What's your business, and who are your customers?

I am the owner of a physical therapy chain located in New Jersey called Exchange Physical Therapy Group. We treat everyone from the wellness patient who is passionate about maintaining a healthy lifestyle to the high-level athlete who sees us to keep that competitive edge, to keep their body in peak performance, and to decrease their chance of injuries so they can perform longer. We see patients with generalized pain from head to toe. We provide orthopedic physical therapy, which includes sports medicine. We have a comprehensive women’s health program with pelvic floor physical therapy. We have a big pediatric population we work with. We provide pre and post-surgical rehabilitation, gait and balance training, and we have a vestibular rehabilitation program. We work with a variety of different patients with different conditions.

Physical therapy is a non-invasive conservative approach to fixing aches and pains in the body, whether it’s in the muscles, joints, or bones. Without medicine, without injections, and without surgeries, we are able to go in and assess the body. We are able to go in and fix the problem and just not chase the symptoms.

We are growing and expanding, and it’s because we are paying attention to the details. We make our patients a priority and put patients first. Our job is to find things in the body that could become a problem. As physical therapists, we are experts in motion. We can prevent problems and accelerate recovery. We can see things in the body that can cause issues down the road.

Tell us about yourself

Helping people has always been my number one priority. EPTG started in a 4th story walk-up in Jersey City. Without business credit, banks would not give us a loan. My business partner, Drew, and I took our multiple credit cards to pay for our buildout and equipment that we didn’t have to pay back for 2 years. We didn’t even have enough money to buy a sign. We would put out a fold-up table outside on the corner of the street with brochures and a spine model and use my dog Chloe to lure people in and let them know we were in the area and when they needed us, we could help. Through the years, we developed the best team possible and opened 4 more locations in Hoboken and Weehawken, with a 5th in Jersey City opening next month.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

Opening five PT locations across Hudson County and partnering with a top hospital system in NJ, helping thousands of patients in the community with their health and recovery. I can honestly speak for our entire team when I say we love helping people. This isn’t just a job; it’s a passion.

What's one of the hardest things that comes with being a business owner?

I have daily challenges of trying to balance life as a mom, a wife, and a business owner. I often find that it’s not always a perfect balance. COVID was really challenging, but I’m thankful that PT was deemed essential, we were able to stay open through the pandemic, and I was able to keep all of my PTs and not lay anyone off. I think the challenges have always made us stronger, and we are able to adapt and change with the times. PT has changed a lot over the past 5 years, and Wallstreet saw how they could capitalize on the profession, so there have been many mergers with private equity firms. This creates a problem for me and my business because I am not being infused with millions of dollars, and I still have to compete. These PT chains are not focusing on patient care but more on numbers and statistics because they have to answer the banks and are popping up on every corner, saturating the market and making it tough for a small business to survive. Insurances have changed drastically after COVID, and deductibles have risen, and with people working from home, it’s challenging because my flagship is in a corporate building where we rely on the people who come to the office every day. I have to open more offices to compete. But I pride myself in being able to keep my employees. I pay them a little more than anyone else, and I allow them to be themselves within my business.

What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?

1. Listen to your gut instinct and let the competition drive you.
2. Take a chance at something you love and believe in.
3. Never get too comfortable, and continue to learn and adapt.

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://www.exchangephysicaltherapygroup.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EPTGJerseyCity/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eptg_pt/
Twitter: https://mobile.twitter.com/eptg_pt
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/eptg/

If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.

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