Businesswomen of the year raise a smile

Golnar and Haleh Abivardi have built a highly successful dental business Courtesy Veuve Clicquot

Dental entrepreneurs Haleh and Golnar Abivardi have won the Veuve Clicquot Business Woman of the Year award for Switzerland.

The sisters were praised for their courage and vision in founding modern “lifestyle” dental centres in prime locations in Zurich. A further opening is planned for London.

It is awarded by the French champagne company in honour of its founder, Barbe Nicole Clicquot Ponsardin, a widow who turned round her husband’s firm to create the highly successful Veuve Clicquot brand in the 19th century.

“We are honoured. This is an internationally known prize,” Haleh Abivardi told swissinfo ahead of the ceremony.

The sisters, both qualified dentists in their 30s, founded their first Zurich Dental Centre in the shopping mall at the city’s main station in 2003.

Their aim was to offer a comprehensive service – it is open late 365 days a year – for busy commuters, city residents and families.

The centre is designed to be welcoming and has an underwater theme, complete with its own aquarium built into the walls.

“What we did was actually quite revolutionary because instead of a normal dentist office we made a huge dental clinic in the middle of a shopping mall and we wanted all the specialists under one roof,” explained Haleh Abivardi.

“Because we were in a shopping mall we had this idea of a walk in – walk in and smile.”

It was an immediate success, drawing in an estimated 30,000 regular clients.

“The first day we started with 20 people, today we have over 150 – it’s a very big practice,” Golnar Abivardi told swissinfo.

The centre also offers aesthetic dentistry, such as teeth whitening – which is becoming more popular in Switzerland – and orthodontics.

“Swiss Smile”

A second centre followed this year in Zurich’s exclusive Bahnhofstrasse, which concentrates more on aesthetic dentistry and implantations. There are many clients from abroad, some of whom fly in especially for their treatments.

But the sisters are not stopping there. New centres are planned this summer for the Swiss luxury resort of St Moritz and in the British capital, London under the name “Swiss Smile”.

The sisters believe that the secret of their success lies in their timing and having the right concept.

“Maybe it’s because there were two young women behind it that’s something special too,” pointed out Haleh Abivardi.

They had to overcome many challenges – Zurich already had a high density of dental practices, 400 in total, and the women had to find the funding they needed. There was also some scepticism about their idea.

Golnar Abivardi added that there were still many more men than women with their own businesses in Switzerland.

Nevertheless the sisters remain convinced that having your own business is a good option for women.

“We both have children and we have found the way to combine family and business. Many women are afraid it can’t work but it does, it’s just a question of organisation,” said Haleh Abivardi.

“Your work actually has to be your hobby and you have to love it.”

swissinfo, Isobel Leybold-Johnson

In brief

The award was first created in 1972 in France. Britain was the first country to follow on in 1973.

16 countries now take part, including the United States, Australia, Japan and Brazil. Switzerland joined in 1985.

The prizes are given between March and May. In June the laureates gather at Madame Clicquot’s estate in Reims, France, to share experiences.

The Abivardis, of Iranian origin but brought up in Switzerland, received their prize at a ceremony in Zurich on Tuesday.

Champagne’s Grande Dame

Barbe Nicole Clicquot Ponsardin (1777-1866) took over her husband’s vineyards following his death in 1805, against the advice of her family. She was 27 years old and had no experience of running a business.

But she soon proved to have good business acumen. In 1810 she founded Champagne Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin and invented the “table de remuage” method which allowed her to achieve a crystal clear wine. This has since been adopted by other champagne houses.

Madame Clicquot was also the first to export French champagne to Russia and central Europe.