Vanitas: Beauty and wellness through knowledge

With headquarters based in Ås and two more clinics in Jessheim and Vensmoen, Norway, Vanitas seeks to help people feel and look better through ethical, accurate and knowledgeable means, offering everything from skin- to migraine treatments.

Though the definition of “beautiful” has changed with time and varies across borders, historically, good looks have been a virtue in most cultures. Vanity and the desire to appear one’s best is just part of human nature, and in the small town of Ås, Norway, there’s a clinic that works to help people do exactly that.

“Vanitas is our way of making small, but significant changes that improve people’s everyday lives,” says Frode Molund Haugen, founder of Vanitas.

“As a clinic that offers injections, it’s very important that people feel safe, comfortable and heard when they come to us. Our customers can expect our honesty, and that we always have their best interest in mind,” says Svein Morten Aune, Haugen’s husband, who runs the clinic alongside him.

Along with cosmetic nurse Maria Schoberg, the two of them represent Vanitas, clinics that put specialisation, safety and knowledge above all else.

Safety through knowledge

Haugen originally became a nurse because he wanted to help others feel good, but soon realised that he needed a less rigid daily routine.

“I branched into psychiatry, but it was quite a heavy road. When I tried to think of ways I could continue to help people, use my creativity, and establish a workspace where I could continue to grow, I found that a beauty and wellness clinic was the right path for me,” he says.

After studying and pursuing the right qualifications, Haugen was finally ready to start his new career.

“The first few years, I had to bounce other jobs alongside running the clinic. It was necessary to make it work, especially back when the topic of injections and skin treatments was still somewhat taboo. In addition, I’m a man in a female-dominated industry, but over time and with hard work, we’ve established a loyal and happy clientele,” says Haugen.

Haugen and Aune credit their success to the team’s constant pursuit of knowledge, saying that though they are qualified, they continue to stay updated on the field’s new findings, attend courses nationally and internationally, and seek out better and more modern alternatives.

Schoberg is a Trained Restylane Injector, while Haugen and Aune are Trained Restylane Masters, which is a title carried by those few who have achieved the highest level of expertise within the Restylane treatment possible in Norway, requiring several years of experience under their belt.

“Vanitas’ motto ‘knowledge through safety’ is something we stand by, and it is the reason we have excellent nurses and a doctor behind us. It’s an important safety net for the customers,” says Haugen.

“It’s the reason we don’t expand more than we need to,” adds Aune. “We want to specialise and be excellent at a few things, rather than be mediocre at a lot of things just for the sake of money.”

Aune explains that this means that they do not offer traditional skincare like a skin care clinic might do, but instead collaborate with skincare clinics across Viken and Oslo to provide the services they excel at so people everywhere can get the best results possible.

Promoting happiness in one’s own skin

Nowadays, the perception of beauty almost changes with the seasons, especially under the influence of social media where a new trend or insecurity springs to life every other week. Haugen explains that the team at Vanitas has no interest in making changes that don’t stand the test of time.

“We’re not a clinic that will pump full the lips of young, unknowing girls or make life-altering physical changes – it’s not what we stand for,” says Haugen. “We help people feel better in their own, existing skin, whether that’s by helping them get rid of physical insecurities such as scars or skin damage or unseen problems such as headaches.”

“Many people who have been exposed to sun or have spent a lot of their years often ask us to help them with their skin. The treatments aren’t excessive or over the top, but they make a difference in their everyday lives, and help people find happiness in their own skin, and that’s what we want,” says Aune.

Hauge adds that sometimes, people just want to look the age they feel, and that’s completely okay too.

“No matter what they come to us for, we make sure that our patients receive plenty of information before, during, and after their treatments, alongside good and consistent follow-up,” he says.

Web: www.vanitas.no
Facebook: VANITAS – klinikken for deg
Instagram: @vanitas_klinikken