Eric and Alby Chenworth pose with their four children. The family owns Wasatch Allergy and Asthma in Salt Lake City and were chosen as the 2018 SBA Utah Family Owned Business of the Year.
Dr. Eric Chenworth is an allergist/immunologist in Salt Lake City. He and his wife, Alby, started Wasatch Allergy and Asthma in July 2013. The practice is a highly specialized medical center that diagnoses and treats allergies and asthma through the latest medical technology with a highly trained and compassionate staff.
Prior to opening this clinic, Chenworth did his medical residency and allergy/immunology fellowship at the prestigious Mayo Clinic and was an assistant professor of medicine at National Jewish Health, a renowned medical research institution. He graduated with honors from Kirksville College of Osteopathic Medicine in Missouri.
In 2014, the Chenworths decided to open a second location and wanted objective data that would support this decision and to determine a particular location for the new clinic. Searching for a market research company, they discovered the Utah Small Business Development Center Network.
Alby Chenworth called and scheduled an appointment with Jim Herrin, the Salt Lake SBDC director. “He came to our business,” she said, “and sat with us to figure out what we wanted to do. A few days later we got the most comprehensive market research report we had ever seen.” With the help of this information, they located and opened their second clinic. The second clinic is located in the southwest part of the Salt Lake Valley in Riverton.
Some of the assistance the Chenworths have received from the SBA and its resource partners included SBDC counseling, market research and site evaluations for expansion into a second location, assistance with loan acquisition (SBA 7a), financial analysis, bookkeeping training, financial projections, human resource management and business management.
Wasatch Allergy and Asthma’s financial position has improved every year due to their substantial growth year-to-year in revenues. This revenue growth has been steady each year as their patient base has grown and as a result of the company’s expansion to a second location, its growing reputation and effective marketing.
“As our profession is one of care, we work hard to make our services affordable to people even if they lack insurance or resources,” Dr. Chenworth said. His approach has allowed the company to still grow at a very substantial rate, while also being able to provide compassionate care and services to many people.