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Sunday Mail
23 May 2004
WRESTLING with WRINKLES
It is not easy to get a Malaysian to admit that his or her face has had
a "job done" to it.
But Brendan Pang, a boyish-looking 32 year-old, confidently points to his
forehead to show the "smooth" result of his an injection done
slightly over a year ago to banish his deep worry lines on his forehead.
"Since the treatment, I have been told that I look more approachable and
pleasant," says Pang, the marketing and sales manager of Parvus Sdn Bhd.
Parvus (pronounced par-verse) is culled from a Latin word that means "youthful'.
The US-headquartered company provides a range of aesthetic procedures,
including line fillers, chemical peels and its most popular, the BTA-procedure
under the French brand of Dysport.
BTA stands for Botulinum Toxin A, a natural protein produced
by bacteria known as Clostridium botulinum. Using a very
small needle, BTA is injected directly into the affected
facial muscles. It takes less than 20 minutes.
The BTA causes facial muscles to relax and when this happens, the wrinkles
start to disappear. The effect can last between four months and a year.
Pang claims that since its introduction to the local market just over a
year ago, Dysport has overtaken Botox, another treatment for wrinkles using
injections. The reason? "There are differences in our services. Try
one and you will know what I mean," offers Pang who, alas, turned
coy and declined when asked to be photographed. More Malaysians, young
and old, of both sexes, are turning to doctors and beauty consultants to
improve their appearances.
Since July last year, a local publisher has even come out with a biannual
magazine, Cosmetic Surgery & Beauty, that highlights the many option-surgical
and non-surgical means-of physical enhancement available in Asia. "It's
a growing market. It is important that people are informed before they
take steps towards cosmetic surgery, because it's still surgery," says
Faridah Stephens, managing director of The Writer's Publishing House.
A small group of foreigners have indeed been having a well-deserved holiday,
flying into Penang for a three-week holiday-cum-plastic surgery. They have
a tuck, a lift or a reconstruction and went home with a tan and new look.
Just over a year ago, 26-year-old Dutch Marloes Giezenaar started Penang-based
Beautiful Holidays (www.beautiful-holidays.com) which arranges cosmetic
surgery holiday packages in tie-ups with local hotel and private hospitals
in Penang.
Since then, the company has had over 75 clients of which 10 are from Malaysia. "Our
customers enjoy the anonymity. They fly in, recuperate around the pool,
and fly out again without anyone noticing they've been under the knife.
The company can also arrange post-surgery tours of Penang.
"Lately, we have gotten more interest from Malaysians and we already have
six booked this year. Our clients are a mix of expatriates and locals. Seeking
privacy and a high level of service is the main reason for these people to come
to us instead of having surgery in their hometown. Also our pricing is competitive.
"We already have eight people booked for the coming two months and expect
many more after our TV show, Sun, Sea an Silicone (see accompanying story), in
Britain,"adds the six-foot blonde. Before Giezenaar founded Beautiful Holidays,
she had a minor plastic surgery in Holland to plump up her lips. Around the same
time, a friend of hers arranged to go to Penang for a tummy tuck. The quality
of the surgery she received, but more outstandingly the cost saving she made,
ignited the idea of Beautiful Holidays, says Giezenaar.
For comparison, in Britain, a breast augmentation with implants is between £3,000
and £5,000 (about RM 21,000 and RM35,000), depending on what kind
of clinic you go to. "With us, including the flight from Britain,
two weeks in a four-star hotel, plus the surgery and our advice, as well
as transport, it comes to about £3,000 - £3,200," says
Giezenaar.
The most popular treatments are breasts augmentation, liposuction, tummy
tucks, facelifts and nose jobs. Every week, the company gets between 20
and 30 requests for a full or partial which involve a full brow/forehead/face
and neck lift. There are a few men, among the many female clients, going
for liposuction and nose jobs. The youngest patient was 19, for breast
augmentation, and the oldest was 62, for a tummy tuck.
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