FAQs
Q: How long will it take me to complete training?
Gussied Academy is *work at your own pace*. All trainings are quick and concise but some require admin/computer set up. I have some students who have completed everything in one evening, others spread it out over a few days. All my students have commented how much they have learned and how simple it was to follow.
Q: Is teeth whitening legal if I'm not a Dentist?
Check out this document that goes over legalities and state to state info:
https://www.pristineteethwhitening.com/faq
Pristine supplies around 150 dentist offices in the state of Utah with their whitening gel + blue desensitivity gel. They’ve been supplying their *American Dental Association* approved products through their academy since 2017.
All products go through an FDA approval process, where certification and MID numbers are provided just to pass through customs. The dentist offices are obviously very specific on products they are using and need to know *down to the gram of hydrogen peroxide* each pen contains. It’s quite an extensive process!
Fun fact! Their first certified students worked at a dentist office where they trained the entire team. They now have thousands of specialists including dentists & hygienists in 42 states & 10 countries!
Keep reading, for some vital info as you are thinking of pursuing a teeth whitening career...
In order to lead with integrity, I want to provide you with necessary information and help answer and and all questions as you begin this business.
Much research and time has been taken to ensure you have as much knowledge as possible when it comes to legalities and state to state procedures.
The FDA classifies our services and whitening gel products as non-medical, but rather cosmetic. We are essentially offering a glorified whitening, spa-like, experience with high quality products. A luxury option for client's who do not want to go to the drug store for an at home whitening kit that hurts their enamel.
Since 2014 the FDA has classified hydrogen peroxide based whitening products as cosmetics. Since they are federally classified, a state cannot re-classify them.
Watch this video by Dr. Josh Brower:
I encourage you to go to social media, search your state and key words “teeth whitening” ... Most likely you will find many legitimate businesses, salons and specialists who have conducted successful whitening services for years. There’s plenty of business for ALL OF US!
Finding fellow entrepreneurs in your state will help inform you on what to avoid, not because you are doing anything wrong, but to be aware of the proper state practices, etc.
These are the guidelines that Pristine has put in place: Because there is no way to keep up with every state and ever-changing information. It’s up to the potential student to check into what other entrepreneurs are doing in your state and if they have run in to any problems.
Check out this Facebook group “Cosmetic Teeth Whitening Laws” and do a quick search in your state for more info.
When training with Pristine, you will learn two different methods, one where you administer the gel on to the client's teeth and a self-administered method where they apply the gel themselves and you facilitate. The service we are providing is a non-invasive, cosmetic procedure. With both of these methods, your hands will NOT be in your client’s mouth at all, the whitening gel is administered through non-invasive techniques, an abundance of caution is taken into sanitization, through gloves, disposable retractors, medical grade cleaning and sterilization.
We always fall back on the Supreme Court ruling that says "Dentists can't control who gets to whiten your teeth".
Here are a few links to individual articles stating that Dentists can’t regulate who whitens teeth:
https://health.wusf.usf.edu/consumer/2015-02-26/dentists-cant-limit-teeth-bleachers-court
http://campbelllawobserver.com/teeth-whitening-case-a-win-for-non-dentists/
https://www.1818legal.com/teeth-whitening-and-the-law-the-battle-over-an-11-billion-industry/
Legal cases:
Pristine’s legal team has been called to court multiple times as potential specialists search for more info before becoming certified. They will call the State Dental Board or DOPL (Dept of practicing Licenses) to check first. (understandable) Each time a case has been brought to court, nothing comes of it and they remain in business. This is the same for other companies offering Teeth Whitening Certification in other states. At one point the Dental Association tried to close down Pristine and the lawyer for the Dental Association actually apologized for even contacting Pristine because it WAS legal and there were no grounds for termination.
No one has ever been terminated or in trouble with our academy.
Many Pristine whitening specialists have Dental Hygienist clients who say the same thing, when you try to contact someone... it sparks unwanted attention because the Dental board is so finicky.
Here are some tips and the problems you might run into: If you contact state licensing, they will tell you to contact, cosmetology board, then they will send you to state Dental Board. We know this from personal experience and many hours of phone tag. The Dental Board is made up of the educators for the Dentists. Their job is to advocate for Dentists so if there is an entity in competition with you and profiting off of something that you think you can regulate, they won't want to be in support of your business, which is why you see that Dental boards aren't in favor of anyone but Dentist offices whitening.
Testimonial from Certified Teeth Whitening Specialist:
“I have a close family member who is a very well-known and established Dentist in my area. I was telling him when I was getting certified to whiten and he said "I would be ALL in favor of that because in order to offer whitening to my patients, the cost is so high because I have to pay my hygienists for training and their time, plus their personal insurance in some cases. I'd much rather send someone the business who has gone through the certification and training". That is most Dentist's stance, it's the dental board that wouldn't be in favor, which explains the conflicting information out there.”
-Lauren, owner of Gussied Academy
Insurance companies like State Farm, and other well-known companies, are insuring certified teeth whiteners in every state. They are not going to violate a state law, if so, that’s a huge liability for them.
When starting ANY business, there are always options to weigh and risks to consider. If you have taken the time to look into your state’s guidelines and feel confident to join our Academy, we would be THRILLED to have you as part of our community!
We are extremely grateful for our own teeth whitening businesses. The opportunity to be a female owned business, as busy women, who can contribute financially without sacrificing long hours in exchange for great pay.
Q: Cost per client + profit margin?
Cost per client is around $10-15 a whitening pen (you can catch them on discount from the Pristine website and take your cost down even more) I use gloves, dental bibs, disposable retractors and vitamin E oil on all clients (purchased on Amazon). I like to say my cost is $20-25. I charge $199 per client and always offer a *bring a friend deal* where they both get their whitening for $150 (each) I give you scripts for client intake /pre care etc in boards through my training so you have exactly what I do and say.
Q: How long do results last?
Results last up to a year. I tell my clients if they are an "everyday coffee/tea drinker", plan on coming every 6-8 months for a touch up.
Q: What is inside the whitening gel?
Pristine teeth whitening gel is a high grade of hydrogen peroxide with key base minerals, and glycerin to thicken the gel. It’s completely safe and FDA approved. The hydrogen peroxide is 35%. Pristine supplies around 150 dentist offices in the state of Utah with their whitening gel + blue desensitivity gel. They’ve been supplying the products through their academy since 2017. Everything has to go through an FDA approval process, they have certifications and MID numbers to even get it through customs from the supplier. The dentist offices are obviously very picky on what they are using and need to know down to the gram of hydrogen peroxide each pen contains. It’s quite a process! Pristine has been around about 6 years. Fun fact! Their first students worked at a dentist office where they trained the entire team. They now have thousands of specialists, including dentists + hygienists, in all 50 states and 20 countries!
Q: Did you whiten your own teeth or did you walk someone else through it?
Yes, I did the entire process myself and learned very quickly that you must keep your head tilted back or you will drool all over yourself. Best method is to do everything leaning back in a recliner and have your gel, hand held mirror, etc close by
Q: Who did you “practice” on and did you give them a discount?
My mom, brother and a few friends who knew I was starting another facet to my business. I asked if they'd be willing to basically let me practice on them if they pay for the cost of my supplies. I was able to gather quite a few before and afters that way.
Q: Other than my certification + equipment, what are my start up costs?
If you were opening a shoe store, you would need to purchase shoe racks, a cash register, mirrors, etc to get the store up and running. This business is no different. Everything on this list is what I personally use and love to run my teeth whitening and sculpting biz. All of this is not required and you can make adjustments to what you like. For example, I chose to buy a travel massage table for $100 because I can use it for both sculpting and teeth whitening. If you are only teeth whitening, a lot of girls start out just buying the gravity chairs that sit up and recline, those are around $40. I always recommend buying a second (or third) lamp because everyone will want to come with a friend and you can double your money that way. There are affordable lamps on Amazon that work great & many of my students use them.
Also take into account, marketing materials and business cards. You can order a stack of 100 for under $30 and I give you an editable canva template of the exact marketing cards I created and pass out to local businesses and clients.
Start up cost + Amazon favs list👇🏼
🛒 Amazon Favorites Teeth Whitening List:
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/23JYH3CT2KG14?ref_=wl_share
🛒 Amazon Favorites Sculpting List:
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/EZCH258464SR?ref_=
In addition to start up supplies and certification, you will need to purchase insurance. For Teeth Whitening it is around $600 a year (depending on the provider you choose) and you will get that info during your training webinar with Pristine + through Gussied Academy.
If you choose Sculpting, you can combine that with teeth whitening insurance and it is around $200 for the year.
Q: If someone has a fake tooth do you feel comfortable whitening their other teeth in an effort to get close to the color of the fake one?
If someone reaches out who has a cap, veneers or crowns, I always give them clear expectation and scenarios before hand. I usually say "I am able to lift the cap to the color it was when it was placed in the mouth, but not any brighter." I had one client who had two caps in her smile and she decided to have me brighten her teeth as white as they would go and then she went back to her dentist where they matched her caps to her newly bright natural teeth. The process I go through will take 3 rounds of 20 minutes where I can basically "spot treat" and decide where I want to place the gel. So if we see that your cap is lifting much brighter than the rest, I just won't put gel on that tooth the next round.
Q: Would there ever be a case where you would refuse to whiten someone’s teeth?
I've never had someone who I've refused to whiten unless they were under 14 year old. One mom did want her son to whiten and he was 13, so we used the least strength gel and did not go the full 3 sessions. I also did this with my own daughter right before she got her braces on. The only case I'd say "NO!" is if someone had gum disease or bleeding gems...but my thoughts are, someone who takes the time to pay for a whitening service probably takes care of their teeth and has good dental hygiene.