At Sakowitz Smiles Orthodontics, the husband-and-wife team of Drs. Scott and Marla Sakowitz create a welcoming atmosphere with a patient-first approach.

Dr. Scott Sakowitz, owner of Sakowitz Smiles Orthodontics, is one of Orlando’s few board-certified orthodontists with locations in Winter Garden and Orlando. He is a Diamond level Invisalign provider, placing him in the top 1% of all Invisalign providers. This achievement demonstrates not only his practice’s adaptation of the technology, but also the office’s ability to handle almost anything. Prior to opening his own practice, Dr. Sakowitz graduated top of his class from the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Dental Medicine before “studying in the freezing cold” at the University of Michigan. 

Orlando Family Magazine spoke to Sakowitz about his practice, career and personal achievements.  

Q: What is the most rewarding part of your job?

A: It’s seeing not just the transformation of the smile, but personality transformations as well. You can see people gain the confidence that really allows the best parts of themselves to come out and it’s definitely very rewarding to see how you can really impact and change someone’s life.

Q: You mentioned you’re a big fan of the transformation of the smile. What is the importance of having a good smile?

A: Having confidence and a great smile will bring you better success. There was an [Invisalign] study in 2012 that found that people with straight teeth were 45% more likely to be hired than those with crooked teeth. When I saw that, I just thought that was incredible. It definitely helped me appreciate the importance of orthodontic treatment and how it can impact and change people’s lives.

Q: What brings a smile to your face?

A: My children make me happy. I know I’m biased, but they have the cutest laughs ever. Their laughter really puts a smile on my face.

Q: What services beyond braces do you provide?

A: We’ve introduced a professional whitening service using a company called GLO Science. With these treatments, we can make someone’s smile whiter and brighter, and a lot of people are very excited by that. We also introduced fun braces called Wild Smiles, which tends to be popular, especially among our younger patients. The brackets come in a bunch of different shapes, my favorite of which, of course, is Mickey Mouse.

Q: You once said that Florida feels like home. Why is that? 

A: Florida really is home. I grew up in Florida and I’ve been here enough years that I don’t even remember what the cold is like. But, I also knew when I had kids that I wanted them to be able to visit Disney any weekend like I was able to growing up. I think it’s just a very Florida lifestyle to be a tourist in your own town.

Q: What is your biggest professional accomplishment?

A: I am a board-certified orthodontist. Board certification is a process, not a requirement, that includes additional exams and a board exam. That’s the highest level of certification that can be achieved and it makes me very proud knowing that I am capable of delivering excellent orthodontic care whether it’s a simple easy case or a very difficult case.

I also opened my own practice, which is not something that everyone does and it has been a great journey. I started out working for other people and quickly realized that I wanted to create my own model of what an orthodontics practice should be. There are a lot of great orthodontists in the Orlando area, but sometimes people can forget about the importance of the customer service side of things and the fact that we’re treating people. It’s one of my biggest professional accomplishments to have created a practice that does both great orthodontic work and great customer service because I think getting the combination right can be very tricky.

Q: If you weren’t an orthodontist, what would you have done instead?

A: Part of what drew me to orthodontics was my love for puzzles–I was even on Wheel of Fortune once. For me it’s always been about the joy of solving puzzles and, believe it or not, I actually create my own escape rooms and own several locations, one of which is The Great Escape Room in downtown Orlando. I really enjoy creating the rooms and getting people to have a fun puzzle-solving experience. Even though my office is very busy, I enjoy putting time into it every week, so I would say if I wasn’t an orthodontist, I’d be doing that.

Sakowitz Smiles Orthodontics
9161 Narcoossee Road #105-B, Orlando
14416 Shoreside Way Suite 130, Winter Garden
(407) 743-7970︱OrlandoOrthodontics.com