Vet in the City opens on Roman Road adding much-needed vet services to the area
Two friends left corporate jobs to open an independent vet practice in Bow that gives animal owners a more personal service.
Charming smiles, bulging biceps and tiny kittens – on socials, vets Martin Cameron-Clarke and Niven Packery are working their angles.
The duo officially opened their new practice Vet in the City on Roman Road Road last week, January 23. Aside from the charity-run PDSA vet hospital on the Malmesbury Estate, it’s the only vet practice in Bow, which is somewhat baffling given the number of dog owners attracted to the area by nearby Victoria Park.
Indeed, residents have long bemoaned the lack of vets in Tower Hamlets so their services may attract customers from further afield. The leafy roads of Stoke Newington in the northeast corner of Hackney offer five vets, which is the number we have serving our entire borough.
‘I think more corporate vets look at those as more high revenue areas,’ Cameron-Clarke said, ‘Whereas around here is viewed in a slightly different way, which is quite odd because it’s a lovely area.’
Corporate vets call the shots nowadays – just six companies own 60% of UK vet practices, a jump of roughly 50% from the last decade. The reason why? Deregulation. Until 1999, only qualified and licensed vets could own a practice – now, they can be owned by conglomerates in unrelated industries. Small independent practices like Vet in the City were the norm. Today, they swim against the tide.
Decked out in fresh greens and greys, the new practice has opened in the double shop-front unit next to Dogbliss which had been empty since before lockdown. It has an onsite lab for testing blood and urine and a surgery theatre.
There are also more modern touches, such as futuristic-looking kennels with mood lighting to relax animal patients waiting for treatment or being monitored, and two feet of sound insulation to protect the neighbours from any caterwauling.
The vets themselves have a relaxed and friendly vibe, with South African accents somewhat softened by years in the UK. Re-assuringly, their pets are healthy and elderly. Cameron-Clarke’s dog Punky is a mixed-breed rescue from Battersea, and Packery’s cat Cookie is a Domestic Shorthair.
Packery, age 36, moved recently with his partner to Hackney to be closer to the practice. Cameron-Clarke, age 39, has lived in Bow for over a decade and is married, with two kids who attend Olga Primary School.
The duo met in 2008 while partying in the same crowds at vet school. ‘Tell the truth, Martin: we were in a drinking club together,’ Packery said. ‘I was trying to forget it,’ jokes Cameron-Clarke.
Both kept vaguely in touch until their respective careers brought them across the globe to big corporate vet branches in London. When they met up, they’d chat about how the mass-market approach to vet treatment was grating on them.
Strict contracts with pharmaceutical providers left little choice of medicines, even if other options would be better for the pet or more cost-effective. ‘[Big corporate vets] have so much buying power they can negotiate special rates,’ Cameron-Clarke said, ‘They have a huge amount of control and they’ve got shareholders to pay out.’
There was also a lack of flexibility towards clients. ‘Not everyone has insurance or a lot of money. You find yourself in a situation where you have to offer gold standard care or nothing else,’ Packery said, ‘When you’re part of big corporate you just feel like one of the many little fish in the sea.’
Spotting a gap in Bow, the two quit their jobs to set up shop together. ‘In my head, I already wanted to do this and I already thought I should ask Martin,’ Packery said, ‘He called me out of the blue and said I actually wanted to ask you the same thing.’
What are the vets most excited about at the new practice? For one, more continuous care. Due to high staff turnover at their corporate jobs, it was rare to see the same pet twice.
‘Everyone has their slightly different way of doing things, tests get repeated and the level of care, not through anyone’s personal choice, it drops,’ Cameron-Clarke explained.
This personal touch has also attracted Registered Veterinary Nurse Nancy McLaughlin to the practice. Many local pet owners will recognise her from her stints at both Goddards Mile End and the PDSA Vet Hospital on the Malmesbury Estate. She’s left her most recent post at Queen Mother Hospital for Animals in Hatfield to return to her roots and work with Cameron-Clarke and Packery.
The vets have also launched preventative healthcare subscription plans, which can build up from the basics to include unlimited free consultations. 5% of the revenue from the plans will go to Cool Earth, a charity dedicated to rainforest protection and climate activism.
With a cosy vibe and an entertaining online presence, Vet in the City has a shot at breaking away from the status quo as part of Roman Road’s famously independent high street.
For more information, visit Vet in the City in our Local Hub.
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