We recently connected with Kedric Bowen and have shared our conversation below.
Kedric, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today How’s you first get into your field – what was your first job in this field?
The journey started where most do. I hit an all time low. A long romantic relationship ended for me and I moved back home. When I did, I took my studies and my career very serious. I also made sure to take good care of my body so I got to the gym and lost 27 lbs and felt better about my appearance and myself in general. With this new found confidence, a month and a half after moving home, I set up a meeting with a dental lab owner to show me what they do and give me a your of their lab for 15 or so minutes. This interaction ended being a 5 hour conversation and a deep personal connection between two people. After that day, the lab owner reached back out to me and asked me if I would like to do a 2 week internship with the company. I said yes emphatically. This 2 week internship turned into 2 months, then 4 months, and then 8 months. After a long time of being with the company I was made an employee officially and then offered the opportunity to purchase the company. After a year with the company I became the owner in the new year.
Kedric, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
Dental Arts Studio is known for our shade match and helping people find their desired smiles. Like many jobs, there is more than meets the eye when it comes to your smile. Line angles, base shade, chroma, characterizations, crack lines, natural wear, no wear, surrounding teeth, natural biological identifiers, face shape, and so so much more. Everything that goes into one tooth is very specific. We will never make the same crown, removable, or non removable appliance twice. What I am personally the most proud of is our team. Our team is truly special. We have come such a long way in such a short period of time. We are the sponsored and preferred lab of the two biggest implant companies that are most prominent in Colorado Springs. We have adapted to and taken on new departments and technology so well. Dental Arts Studio’s team is always doing team huddles in the morning so we are all familiar with who’s station is hurting for some attention and help and always cross training everyone so we know more and can do more. We care so deeply for every patient we have the opportunity to work with. This team does everything we can to go above and beyond for patient and Dr. satisfaction. Dental Arts Studio is always tackling challenges and growing alongside them. We have opened up 2 new departments for incredibly complicated surgical guides for placing implants and coordination with surgeons and specialists. We are the longest standing, and largest privately owned dental laboratory in Colorado Springs. We take pride in that fact and you can always tell due to the quality of our work.
We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.
Being 22 years old and being told no by 5 banks to get a loan to purchase a small business is the start to the personal resilience of my journey. At the time I had a car worth 3k dollars and a couple hundred dollars in the bank as my collateral for large loan from a bank for 9 figures. No means nothing once you find your yes. Always keep going until you get your yes. It’s out there. You just have to believe you can find it.
How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?
Swimming with sharks as a minnow. This gets you recognized incredibly fast. I joined all the CE courses I could just to get close to very large names in the dental field. I became a member of a large study club in the dental profession. I asked questions and took up space like I belonged to be there just as much as the others in the room. I went up to people and conversed with them when I knew they had no time for me. Let it be known that non of this was in any means in my comfort level. When you create a persona of confidence, I have found this leads to very positive feedback. Being the age I am, in a career that has little to no respect for those who have under 10 years of experience being a ceramist, I needed to get very creative to stop everyone from turning their heads away from me. I eventually flipped the narrative of my age to my advantage. Now when I walk in a room, I take on the understanding that the room says, “Wow, he’s young. How did he get to make it to this invite only room?” To bring it all back together, I would say that taking up space and allowing yourself to take up space in rooms you don’t feel you deserve to be in or belong in. It was all a mental game for me.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.dentalartsstudio.com
- Instagram: Dentalartsstudioinc
- Facebook: Kedric Bowen
- Linkedin: Dental Arts Studio
- Yelp: Dental Arts Studio
Image Credits
Headshot is Cains Candids