With everything going on in the world, there’s been an increased interest in how we take care of ourselves, but premium oral care upstart vVardis has been thinking about this for a while now. The Swiss brand is taking a different approach to the way we treat our teeth; while the market is flooded with products promising quick fixes—often using harmful ingredients that do more harm than good—or natural products that rarely deliver the results people want. Wanting a healthy, effective, and sustainable alternative, sisters Haley and Golnar Abivardi looked to their experience leading the renowned dental clinic Swiss Smile to create a solution themselves. vVardis was the result of years of research to combine ingredients that not only brighten and clean teeth but strengthen them too using ingredients that boost the power of fluoride—all while remaining sustainable. We caught up with Haley and Golnar to learn about how they started vVardis, what to avoid to maintain bright teeth, and where oral care is heading in the future down below.

 

V Tell us about your background. What do you think people were getting wrong about oral care?

 

VV We’ve always been inseparable – we both love nature, we hike, we ski, and we knew we wanted to eventually have a career together. The journey to vVardis really began in medical and dental school, where we wrote our joint dissertation on the medicinal uses of plants and herbs. Switzerland requires you to complete two years of medical school before beginning dental school. Because of this, we learned about the entire body and how dental health affects your overall well-being. When your mouth is healthy, your body follows.  

When we graduated, we started a small dental practice and quickly learned that people are often afraid to go to the dentist, and we wanted to change that. Our vision was to make dentistry fearless, convenient and even an overall pleasant experience. 

From this vision, we created an entirely new concept that provided the absolute best patient experience, combining a comforting and welcoming environment with the latest technology, called Swiss Smile. Swiss Smile is one of the most internationally known leading dental clinics, and in addition to Swiss Smile, we ran our own dental hygienist school and academy for Dentists in Switzerland. 

For us, the human elements of dentistry have always come first. This, combined with 30 years of dental experience and expertise, led us to create vVardis. 

V What did you find frustrating about the products currently on the market?

 

VV There are a lot of products on the market, and it’s important for us to provide only the best products containing the best ingredients to our customers – products that will not harm your teeth and are good for your overall health. Part of this is because we are mothers, and we’re very conscious about what we put in and on our children’s bodies. Every vVardis ingredient was reviewed and selected with safety in mind. All vVardis products are vegan, safe, FDA-approved, and don’t contain any harmful chemicals, including SLS, parabens or hydrogen peroxide. 

 

V When did you decide to take matters into your own hands and start your own company?

 

VV Through our work with Swiss Smile, we learned that most people only go to the dentist once or twice a year at most. Our goal has always been to motivate and help people take care of their mouths and teeth, which is essential for the health of your whole body. After the success of Swiss Smile, we wanted to continue bringing our vision for oral health to a new level. Having treated thousands of patients over the years, we have often been asked about which dental and whitening products are the best to use at home, so we decided to develop a line of products that people could use every day at their homes to maintain the best oral health in-between visits to the dentist.

 

V The one concern people have about whitening is that it would weaken enamel or make teeth more sensitive. How did you address that with vVardis, and find a way to make it a teeth-strengthening product?

 

VV This is definitely a common concern, and that’s why we’re so proud to say that we have created the first tooth whitener on the market that is actually good for your teeth, vVardis Aletsch. Our Aletsch utilizes a high dose of our globally patented proprietary formula, WX Formula, and is a brush-on gel serum. WX Formula is a hydrogel that biomimics nature and is FDA Approved to boost the efficacy of fluoride. In combination with fluoride, WX Formula sheathes the teeth in a protective matrix that encourages the enamel to rebuild itself naturally and can be used daily on sensitive teeth, and even on ceramic crowns and composite fillings. 

 

V What are other ways people can take care of their oral health, in terms of what they consume? Do coffee and wine drinkers need to be worried?

 

VV Aside from using vVardis, try avoiding or minimizing the consumption of acidic or sugary foods. This can create an acidic environment in the mouth eroding the tooth enamel which leads to cavities. If these types of foods are consumed then rinsing often with water helps to reduce acid and helps to remineralize the saliva creating natural protection for the teeth. 

V The nature of oral care makes it easy to become a major waste producer; how did you approach your ambition of creating sustainable oral products?

 

VV Sustainability is central to our brand. The ecosystem of the Swiss Alps is central to vVardis formulas and products. The Alps are not just our headquarters, but our inspiration. They represent our dedication to sustainability and obligation to leave our field and our planet better, cleaner and healthier than we found it. All of our wood and paper products, including our toothbrushes and whitening brushes and all secondary packaging, are made from FSC-Certified (Forest Stewardship Council) wood which is considered the gold standard designation for wood harvested from forests that are responsibly managed, socially beneficial, environmentally conscious, and economically viable. Our toothpaste, Edelweiss, comes in a Patented PICEA® wood tube, which is made from 95% renewable resources. The processed spruce comes from certified forests in the EU and the wood comes from sawdust created by German carpenters. The PICEA™ wood tube has a carbon footprint that is 40% better than a conventional PE tube. At the same time, it offers the same qualitative characteristics in terms of barrier properties, decoration, food suitability and recyclability. We chose to use wood instead of bamboo to ensure it’s harvested in a socially responsible manner. From a whitening standpoint, vVardis Aletsch is more sustainable than other whitening products on the market that use a lot of plastic, both as their delivery mechanism, like strips, and for their packaging. 

V How do you hope oral care will change in the future? What is your goal for the brand? 

 

VV We hope that people will make their oral health more of a priority, because it truly is so important to our overall health, and it’s something that isn’t spoken about enough. We want people to care about their mouths and teeth beyond just visiting the dentist once a year. For vVardis, our goal is to continue building our business while expanding our product offering. We have a lot of plans in-store for the future, and we’re so excited to share them with you as soon as we can!