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Meet the movers and shakers, power brokers and thought leaders accelerating change across dentistry, healthcare, business and media. Hosted by Benco Dental’s senior executives and experts from our company, each episode delves deep into how the brightest minds are shaping dentistry’s future through remarkable innovation—and how you can position yourself for personal and professional success in this fast-changing world.

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Episode 12

An Interview with Dr. Dimple Desai, Head Dentist, Luminous Smiles in Newport Beach, CA

February 25, 2021 Hosted by Chuck Cohen

Starting a dental practice from scratch is not for everyone.
Dr. Dimple Desai, however, shifted successfully from associate to independent dental practitioner in the competitive market of Orange County, California.How did she reach her goals? Persistence.

At 15, she had shadowed her family dentist with positive outcomes, and as an undergrad at the University of Southern California she explored the option further. A career counselor suggested she visit the Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry on campus, and once there, Admissions Director Mark Mitchell pointed her in the direction of the two-year hygiene program as an entrée to dental school.
Dr. Desai earned her dental degree and today is back on the USC campus regularly as a clinical adjunct professor.

In 2010 Dr. Desai joined an Aesthetic Residency, and while working as an associate in a dental practice she continued to pursue academic and clinical education. From there she went from working part-time and raising two young children, to working full-time, setting up her own practice from scratch. From the Luminous Smiles logo and branding, to the color palette and lighting, she dedicated endless hours of research and planning to create a work of art, just as she does with each patient’s smile. Today, she implements the science and evidence-based dentistry she mastered while studying with Dr. John Kois.
On the clinical side, at Luminous Smiles, she requested spacious 125-square foot operatories, which today, in a post-pandemic environment, allow space for an air filter, scanner, photography cart and several other units. Dr. Desai is working diligently toward her next professional goal, which is to achieve accreditation from the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry, where she is an Accredited Candidate.
Dr. Desai and her husband Sagar are raising their son and daughter, Dylan, 9 and Sydney, 7.

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MEET OUR HOSTS

Chuck Cohen: Managing Director

Chuck Cohen graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 1989 with a degree in English, and joined Benco as a territory representative soon after graduation. He’s taken on increasing responsibilities in the sales and marketing areas, becoming Managing Director in 1996. He serves on a variety of industry and community boards, including Wilkes University, the Dental Lifeline Network, and Jewish Community Alliance of Wilkes-Barre.

Rick Cohen: Managing Director

After three years as an IT consultant at Accenture, Rick Cohen joined Benco in 1994 to create Painless, the industry’s first windows-based e-commerce software. Since then, he’s taken on increasing responsibilities within Benco, focusing on Information Technology, Logistics, Clarion Financial, and our private brand. He is Co-Chair of the Benco Family Foundation, a trustee of WVIA public television and public radio, and a Director of the Dental Trade Alliance Foundation.