Swiss Smile Dental Clinics which is Europe’s leading dental service brand has now entered India to launch a chain of 10 clinics at a total investment of around Rs 150 crore (US$ 30 million). The first clinic is coming up in Bangalore at an investment of around Rs 15 crore (US $ 3 million). The Indian entry is through a 50:50 joint venture by Global Tech Park and Swiss Smile Holdings. For Swiss Smile, this is the maiden foray outside Europe.
The Bangalore clinic will be opened next month with a capacity of nine chairs and eight specialists. Swiss Smile will take around six months to consolidate operations, before it chalks out its pan India entry beginning with a second clinic in Bangalore. It will then move on to metros like New Delhi, Chennai, Mumbai and Hyderabad, Dr Sathya Kallur, CEO and Clinical Director, Swiss Smile Dental Clinics India Private Limited told Pharmabiz.
The advanced facility which will be operational right through the week will be manned by a team of foreign trained Indian dental consultants and will be open from 7 am to 9 pm. This will be the biggest advantage for the patients. The multi-specialty dental care under one roof will offer the entire services from dental care, oral surgery, orthodontics, restoration, Periodontics, Implantology and Endontics, besides aesthetic dentistry. “The high quality service will come in at affordable cost. We intend to offer platform of next generation dental care with a prime focus on basic hygiene, evidence based medicine and access to modern technology. This pioneering concept together with branding and international experience will give us the edge in the Indian dental service space,” he added.
The maiden Clinic in India has imported its range of dental equipment, installed the standard software used in Europe for the treatment and service modalities. Swiss Smile is also looking to launch its range of toothpastes, teeth conditioners and tooth brushes too.
Further, Dr Kallur has formed the Dental Community Market and Dental Knowledge Enhancement Programme to create an awareness on the trends and technologies in the field. The Indian Dental Council and Association would also team up for these efforts.
The European dental service major has currently in clinics in Zurich, St Moritz and London which generate revenues to the tune of US$ 30 million. According to Clifford Zur Nieden, Member, Board of Swiss Smile Holdings global dental segment market is estimated at US$ 18.8 billion in 2008. The market is dominated by US, Europe and Japan. The growing aged population, growing middle class segment and disposable incomes made us head towards India and Bangalore in particular. There is also a enormous supply-demand gap in Indian dental service space and we intend to bridge the gap, he added.
There is a co-relation between dental infection and systemic diseases. Therefore in Europe, Swiss Smile Clinics are consulted by specialists in other medical branches to before a general surgery. In fact, Physicians-Surgeons in US and Europe mandate a dental check up before surgeries. We will be looking at a similar cooperation with Indian hospitals too, said Nieden.
During the global economic slowdown, Swiss Smile has not been impacted therefore cost of service has not been an issue. The visible trends are patients looking to maintain teeth, acceptance of implants and high quality crowns.