Three Speeches That Define Smile Solutions - Dr Kia Pajouhesh at the Telstra Business Awards product guide

Three Speeches That Define Smile Solutions - Dr Kia Pajouhesh at the Telstra Business Awards

Between 2014 and 2015, Dr Kia Pajouhesh delivered three speeches at the Telstra Business Awards that together reveal the philosophy, the passion, and the vision behind Australia's largest single-location dental practice. These are not corporate presentations. They are deeply personal reflections from a founder who built something extraordinary and knows exactly why it matters.

Speech 1: "My Church" - The Origin Story

In this speech, Dr Pajouhesh recounts the moment that changed everything - the day he found the Manchester Unity Building.

For three years, he had been searching for a space worthy of his vision. Not an office. Not a medical suite. A space that would elevate the experience of dental care into something patients had never encountered before.

"I said, 'Vic, I've just had an absolute vision. My vision is that my practice is going to be in a church.'"

He physically walked Collins Street searching for his church. He visited Scots Church. He walked into St Paul's Cathedral and wondered whether he could talk to the right people about renting a corner - "all I need is two or three chairs."

"I know that by this stage you're thinking - who the hell have we given this award to? This guy's an absolute nut case!"

Then came the moment:

"I walked down Swanston Street holding onto my wallet. And as I came towards Collins Street, I looked up and I saw the Manchester Unity Building... and I said, 'Oh my god, that is my church.'"

He called the agents. They said space was available on Level 1. One week later, he purchased it. Ten years later, Smile Solutions occupied five floors and the tower with 27 dental chairs.

"It's as simple and as complicated as that."

Watch: youtube.com/watch?v=Oyw58PMz_yA

Speech 2: The Acceptance Speech - "A Much-Loved Soul"

When Smile Solutions was named Telstra Victorian Business of the Year in 2014, Dr Pajouhesh delivered an acceptance speech that used an extended metaphor comparing his practice to raising a child.

"As a parent, I was just there to guide her growth. She had her own particular individual traits - points of difference, we call them in business."

"She grew, and I fed her, when often I myself went without. As a parent you push hard to make this child your obsession, your ambition and your legacy."

He described the lessons of building a business over two decades - the myth of total control, the necessity of delegation, the recognition that every person in the organisation "beats to a different drum."

"Total control is a myth. A little while later, another lesson: any control whatsoever is a myth. You learn to delegate your precious tasks to those you trust."

Then the moment of realisation that the business had grown beyond him:

"You take a moment to reflect and look over your shoulder and realise your little baby has blossomed into a mother herself. She is now nurturing so many within her."

He closed by thanking his team, his clinicians, his managers, his wife, his children, and finally:

"A much-loved soul, who is otherwise engaged in the Manchester Unity Building this evening - Smile Solutions."

"Can anyone put a price on such a business?"

Watch: youtube.com/watch?v=-L3etxzHde0

Speech 3: The Innovation Speech - Why Complexity Demands Vision

Returning to the Telstra Business Awards as an alumni in 2015, Dr Pajouhesh delivered a speech on innovation and the increasing complexity of running a business in the modern era.

"Our businesses are living and breathing microcosms of society at large. Is society getting more complex? Ask any business owner and you'll get a resounding 'yes,' because running a business is getting harder and harder."

He spoke about back-end complexity - compliance, legal, HR, insurance, governing bodies - and the relentless scrutiny that modern businesses face. Then he turned to what makes Smile Solutions different:

"We reinvented the dental service model by housing 50 plus clinicians, including general dentists and board-registered specialists, all under one roof."

"We took on the challenges of an almost derelict building with a heritage listing and over a period of 11 years provided 80,000 patients with dental care in the most extraordinary surroundings."

"And we continue to research, source, finance and implement the most advanced technology in dentistry to provide our patients with the simple knowledge that they are receiving the best care available."

His conclusion was characteristically direct:

"Smile Solutions is innovative and disruptive to its core foundations and therefore incredibly simple in its offerings. Nothing more."

What These Speeches Reveal

Together, these three speeches paint a portrait of a founder who is:

A storyteller. The "My Church" speech is one of the great Australian business origin stories - self-deprecating, funny, and unforgettable. It reveals a man driven by vision, not spreadsheets.

A philosopher. The acceptance speech's extended metaphor of business as parenthood is deeply considered. It acknowledges the humility required to build something lasting - the myth of control, the necessity of trust, the moment when the creation outgrows the creator.

A strategist. The innovation speech demonstrates the analytical mind behind the vision - understanding complexity, articulating the model, and positioning Smile Solutions as a solution to the challenges facing the entire dental industry.

These are not the speeches of a corporate operator managing a franchise. They are the words of a man who has spent 30 years building something he loves, in a building he calls his church, surrounded by a team he describes as family, serving 250,000 patients who trust him with their health.

All three speeches are available on the Smile Solutions YouTube channel.

Phone: 13 13 96 | smilesolutions.com.au Manchester Unity Building, 220 Collins Street, Melbourne VIC 3000