The Dentists Sotogrande: Interview with Anders Friman, owner of the prestigious Swedish Clinic.
The Dentists of Sotogrande is a Swedish dental clinic, specializing in cosmetic dentistry and is a full member of the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry.
Located in the quiet area of Paniagua in Sotogrande, the clinic is equipped with the latest, state of the art equipment necessary to provide a fully comprehensive, highest quality service in dental health and dental beauty.
Therefore, Charles Gubbins & Stephanie Noll visited Dr. Anders Friman at his Clinic in Galerías Paniagua to know a bit more about his career.
Where are you from, and how did you end up in Sotogrande? Since when have you been in your current location?
I’m from north of Sweden where I also studied dentistry. After a couple of years working in Stockholm, I was head-hunted as a dentist for a Swedish dental clinic in Germany, where a worked for some years until I was head-hunted for a position as medical manager for an American Dental Clinic in Abu Dhabi UAE. During that time, I also started to study cosmetic dentistry and dental-occlusal-physiology in the USA, where I also got to be member of the AACD (The American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry).
After years being employed dentist, I wanted to open up my own business and I also wanted to go back to Europe. Due to the climate and also friends that lived down here in south of Spain, I ended up in Sotogrande, where I started up The Dentists in 2005.
As a member of AACD, I follow the evolvement of the dental industry closely with conferences and courses over in the USA, the evolvement in aesthetics is amazing, with materials and techniques which mimic the natural look of teeth.
How has the dentistry industry evolved over the years?
The time when fillings, crowns and prosthetics were ugly and visible is in the past.
I have the philosophy of interdisciplinary dentistry, meaning you can’t master everything in the field of dentistry. You have to concentrate in that what you are best at. Therefore, at the clinic, I have specialist for surgical treatments, like placement of implants, bone transplantation etc. Also, a specialist in orthodontic treatments like braces. I also have a beautician and medical doctor for clients that are not only looking for improvement and appearance of their teeth and smile, but also the area around the teeth, the skin, face and neck.
I like and I’m interested in people and I try my best to listen to their needs. Every one of us is unique and different and have different priorities and needs. Some people are “afraid of dentist”. Some haven´t been for years and their teeth could be in a catastrophic state. Some avoid smiling fully because they don´t want to show their teeth.
What’s the best thing about your industry?
What I love most in my work is when people that are really afraid, is to get their confidence get them out of that fear, fix their teeth and make them smile with confidence. That’s my absolute best achievements.
What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever been given professionally?
The best advice I ever got was at university and that’s the Hippocratic Oath, from Hippocrates “the father of medicine”, in short summary is like.. “comfort, do your best to heal but first do no harm…”.
How do you market your practice?
I do a lot of marketing like ads in local papers, sponsoring events, billboard etc. But the best adds is the mouth to mouth recommendations we get to our clinic.
We would also like to know more about Anders Friman, personally..
What’s your ideal holiday?
Sun sea and beach, we got right here, so I like going to a big town for culture things that we lack here, like concerts, theatre opera etc.
What was your childhood ambition?
Actually 1969 when I was 6 years old me and my family visit Las Palmas, that vacation had a huge impact on me, since then I knew that I would end up living here in Spain.
What’s your culinary guilty pleasure?
I love good food and good wine and I love to cook.
Do you have any weird, unusual or exciting hobbies?
Beside dentistry I’m in to the fashion business, it’s not weird but something completely different from dentistry.
If you had a dinner party and could invite three famous people, alive or dead, who would they be and why?
Jesus, Mahatma Ghandi and Buddha would be great to have home for dinner.
What’s the best restaurant you’ve been to in Sotogrande?
There are many good restaurants here in Sotogrande and the area, it’s difficult top pick one specific depends on what you fancy at the moment.■
?? The Dentists – Sotogrande
Email: info@dentistsotogrande.com
Telephone: 0034 956 795 273
Website: www.dentistsotogrande.com
Instagram: www.instagram.com/the_dentists_sotogrande/
Facebook: www.facebook.com/Thedentistssotogrande/
