The Beginning – Why We Started SMART Pedodontics

In almost 3 months from now we will have the SMART Pedodontics 3’rd Edition. When you look at SMART Pedodontics today — the vibrant event with speakers from all over the world and a community of passionate pediatric dentists — you might think it was always this way. But few know how this journey truly began.

 

Three years ago, we started SMART Pedodontics with a simple idea: to bring the best international specialists here, to Romania, so that local doctors wouldn’t need to travel thousands of kilometers to learn from the top minds in the field.

We never thought that pediatric dentists from countries like Moldova, Serbia, the Czech Republic, Greece, Slovakia, South Africa, or even the USA would be interested… but one thing we knew for sure: we would do it in English, so that everyone — from Romania and abroad — would feel included.

It was challenging, especially since only a few believed in the project. And in order to be innovative, we needed to set a fee that wasn’t typical in Romania for a pediatric dentistry event.

We didn’t have big sponsors. No secured budget. Everything was booked in advance using our own savings, hoping that if things didn’t work out, we could cover the losses ourselves. We received all kinds of advice: “Do it small, maybe 100 people, don’t risk too much…”

But we believed in something bigger: a place where doctors could truly connect, learn in depth, and take home real protocols to use on Monday morning.

We launched in March 2023 with a 100-seat venue, and by May, we were already sold out. As interest grew, we had to adapt quickly — changing the location, bringing technology in the new room  and learn on the fly how to negotiate with venues while keeping the financial risk under control.

We built business plan after business plan, determined to offer participants more than just another dental conference. We wanted to create a fresh energy, a unique vibe, and a space that looked and felt different from any other event in dentistry. A place where connection, learning, and inspiration could thrive.

And it worked. The community responded.

 

The amazing part? Incredible partners joined us, like NuSmile — people who melted our hearts and helped us dream bigger. Alongside them, partners from Romania stood by us, returning edition after edition: Terra Dent, DMG, Septodont, New York Dental, Medident, Dental Focus, DentaAmerica with Curaprox and Curasept, SDI, Philips, Dentsore, EMS, Poka, Istoma, Oral B, Elemx… all of them were there when it mattered.

 

For us, they aren’t just exhibitors — they are partners who believe in our vision, supporting initiatives that might not bring immediate returns, but that build something lasting. We truly appreciate their effort in making products visible and accessible to our audience. You can’t imagine how much that means.

Also, from the very beginning, many parts of the logistics were managed by volunteers — doctors, students of dentistry, future doctors who worked incredibly hard and learned what it means to be part of a team. Many others joined so that we could create something that is there even when things don’t go as planned. We shared countless moments together, and we know that for them too, the SMART Pedodontics experience will remain unforgettable.

 

We’ve been lucky to have incredible speakers who believed in this vision and said YES from the start. They took a chance on us, just as we took a chance on this dream.

Even now, before we confirm a speaker, we meet personally. We want professionals and practitioners who bring more than knowledge and slides — who share their experience, listen to questions, talk openly 1-on-1, and inspire us not just to learn, but to change.

Some might say the ticket is expensive. But behind every edition are enormous costs: for logistics, for each creative idea that you might not find at other medical events, for the time and energy to create a truly intimate, warm, authentic experience — not a crowded convention hall with quick talks and no chance to connect.

Of course, we dream of a bigger venue, a more spectacular space, a place where we can put in practice all of our craziest ideas — and that time will come, we are sure of it.

 

What makes us happiest? Hearing, edition after edition, how doctors change their practice, how treatments become easier, how even the most experienced professionals discover a new sense of purpose in their work.

That’s what we want SMART Pedodontics to be: a place of meaning, of growth, of community — for all of us who believe in the future of pediatric dentistry in Romania and beyond.

📅 This year, from 2–5 October  in Timișoara, we continue the story with incredible speakers

We’d love to see you there.

With gratitude,
Mari & Dr.Cosmina Dusan