Adventurous, ambitious and determined to live with intention, purpose and meaning … Ballito’s Thinus and Lee van Niekerk are living their best North Coast lives.
ou can’t help but feel comfortable and welcome when you first meet Thinus and Lee van Niekerk. Both incredibly down-to-earth and friendly, yet also driven, ambitious and focused, they are what so many aspire to be.
This year celebrating 10 years of success with their business, The Cosmetic and Dental Emporium (CDE), Thinus and Lee are also dedicated parents to their three young children – Anah (6), Leo (4) and Joah (3).
Lee, a born-and-bred farm girl from eShowe, met Thinus while in her final year of studying finance and economics in Pietermaritzburg. Thinus was working as a dentist in private practice at the time.
The couple continued to date when Lee moved to KZN to take up a teaching position at LIV Village (which provides residential care for orphaned and vulnerable children), and Thinus opened his Ballito practice. They ended up living together at LIV Village for six years.
“We both have hearts for people, and staying at LIV was an incredible way to start our marriage and our family. Our daughter, Anah, was born there,” says Lee. “The LIV journey was a big part of our lives and while we are no longer as hands-on, we remain involved.”
When Lee fell pregnant with their second child and things started to get busier in the business, they decided to move to Ballito. That was also when Lee began working with Thinus in the business.
“We have always wanted to be very involved in our kids’ lives and Lee needed more flexibility. We also needed an extra set of hands to help me action things, particularly on the human resources and marketing side,” says Thinus. “Having Lee here has truly been amazing.”
Having become renowned – locally, nationally and abroad – as one of the most forward-thinking, technologically-advanced dental practices in the country, CDE has advanced the dental experience and set new standards for patient care. This, Thinus says, comes down to having a strong, dedicated team who are constantly driven to advance and take the ‘next step’.
“We have a wonderful team of long-standing employees, and I couldn’t do what I do without them. Our business is dynamic and digital and our new-age offerings give patients a completely different experience.”
Offering the very best of what is available in dentistry today, CDE patients enjoy the benefits of this high-tech, modern dental practice on a number of levels. Not only is the practice completely paperless, but when it comes to smile makeovers, braces, aligners and implantology, the software Thinus uses means patients spend much less time in the chair, experience less trauma and their results and outcomes are entirely predictable.
“The predictability of digital dentistry is something we’ve never had before. I am able to do the full surgery on my software beforehand. It’s been a game-changer from a professional side. It also shortens procedure times, so something that may have taken an hour to an hour and a half before is now over in minutes,” says Thinus, who often travels abroad to stay up to date with international research and technology advancements.
When they are not working hard in their practice, Thinus and Lee (and the kids) love spending times outdoors and going on adventures. “We are both very adventurous and we love Africa,” says Lee, who, when she turned 21, went on a motorbike trip across Africa with her father.
“You’ll always find us outdoors and going off-the-beaten-track. We love the ocean and nature and our kids are always the ones jumping off the highest rocks and climbing the highest trees,” laughs Thinus.
At Christmas time, the Van Niekerk family have a few traditions that are very important to them. These include Lee and Anah baking Christmas cakes together for the kids’ teachers (the children are then given fondant to make their own ‘nativity scenes’ on top of the cake), and every year they make gingerbread houses with their friends.”
Details: The Cosmetic and Dental Emporium – suite 25 and 29, Sanhall Office Park, Ballito, 032 586 3284, 032 586 0767, [email protected], @cosmetic_and_dental_emporium
Text: LEAH SHONE | Photographs: CHRIS ALLAN PHOTO
Hair & Makeup: GINA RODRIGUES
Boys’ shorts: BREAZIES | Shoot location: SALA BEACH HOUSE
