Interview with Ertan Wittwer, Entrepreneur and the Founder of Best Smile
Straightening teeth with conventional braces is usually expensive, and may feel unpleasant to the wearer. The start-up Best Smile would like to change it, and manufactures invisible braces for adults, which are distributed through its own retail outlets all across Switzerland. we met Ertan Wittwer, the founder of Best Smile, for an interview.
Mr Wittwer, in the past you were a web entrepreneur, but last summer you founded Best Smile, a start-up in the field of dental medicine. What had moved you to switch industries?
Invisible braces, also known as clear aligners, are fabricated using 3D printing technology. It had always fascinated me. And setting up a company, in whatever industry, just always makes you have a real lot of fun.
What are the advantages of teeth correction using Best Smile’s aligner therapy over fixed braces?
Our devices are almost invisible, can be removed during meals, are more pleasant for their users and cost considerably less than traditional treatment.
Compared to traditional teeth straightening, you tout substantially lower treatment costs. How can this reduction be explained? And is the cost of such treatment partially covered by health insurance?
Best Smile products are bought directly from the manufacturer. Made in Winterthur, our invisible dental braces are of genuine Swiss quality. The company itself is responsible for whole processing, from scanning to production to logistics. Hence we can offer treatment at most affordable prices. So nowadays, teeth alignment does not have to be expensive any more. With developments of the digital era, it is possible to produce invisible braces of the same quality more quickly, more efficiently and more cheaply. If you have additional health insurance coverage, treatment costs are partially refundable.
In August 2018 Best Smile ran a pop-up store in Zurich Main Railway Station, and this September the first dental practice has been opened in Zurich Enge. How do your expansion plans look like?
In the first quarter of 2019 we are going to open surgeries in St Gallen, Zurich Bellevue and Basel. Our aim is to have up to eight outlets throughout Switzerland by the end of 2019.
Closing question we usually ask: What advice would you give our young entrepreneurs who have just founded their first business through STARTUPS.CH?
Never get off the track and pursue your goal. Do not listen to people who always say no – if I had done so, it is very likely that I would not have opened any company at all. Besides, you should also surrender some shares to investors, co-founders or strategically important employees. My motto is: better a small piece of a big cake than a large piece of a small cake.
We thank you very much for your exciting interview.
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