- "The 'Beauty Pope,' Mang, expresses no intention of retiring at the age of 75"
Is he more successful as a businessman or a surgeon? Werner Mang ponders for a moment. "I'd say it's a toss-up," admits the director of Bodenseeklinik, gazing around his office filled with celebrity photos and cheerful smiles. Who might've been his operating room guests? Germany's renowned cosmetic surgeon falls strangely quiet.
"It remains a touchy subject," he admits. At Bodenseeklinik, patients even check-in under false identities to enhance their looks in secrecy.
Few have mastered the art of combining star allure and discretion like Mang lately. With audacious comments - be it about his specialty or public finance, performance culture, or veganism - he's a regular in talk shows, newspapers, and TV. His photos with stars like Costa Cordalis, Roberto Blanco, and Fritz Wepper pop up, but the identities of his famous patients largely remain speculation.
With celebrities for his own fame
His clinic in Lindau, offering a breathtaking view of Swiss Lake Constance, consistently crops up in discussions as a luxurious destination for image enhancement enthusiasts. Mang has turned the beauty business into a seven-figure fortune – and himself into a celebrity.
On his 75th birthday, Mang reminisces on a prosperous career that truly took off when he, as a resident doctor, straightened the nose of an actor named Götz George, who broke it on set. He transformed the Bodenseeklinik into a European staple, acquired other beauty clinics, published books, and renovated properties on Lindau Island.
Fine for causing injury as his downfall
However, his rise wasn't without controversy and setbacks. His downfall came in 2013 when he was fined for causing bodily harm, received through a Strafbefehl. He allowed an unlicensed plastic surgeon to operate alone in the Bodenseeklinik, which was unlawful at the time.
Though Mang maintains that no patients suffered due to this, he acknowledges his error in hiring the unlicensed physician. "I simply overlooked the qualifications," he confesses. At that point, he oversaw every aspect of the Bodenseeklinik - the staff, the procedures, the administration, the finances. His burgeoning business had become too vast for him to manage alone.
Yet, he's learned from his mistake, he insists. "When you're at the top, you must weather setbacks, but rise again – and press on." He delegated the organizational responsibilities within the clinic to others. Now, he spends most of his time treating patients and curtails his afternoons.
But Seldom imagines retiring at 75 with a scalpel and syringe. "The operating room is my life," he says. "It keeps me young."
He shows no signs of trembling or shaking - "the next five years will be full throttle." He's determined to work as long as he can – even if his daughter Gloria appears ready to take over as clinic business manager, operating company board member, and founder of her own cosmetics line.
Mang sees himself as a trailblazer - others differ.
When asked about Dr. Mang's impact in his field, views diverge widely. He considers himself a trailblazer in the world of cosmetic surgery and author of international standard works. However, the German Society for Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgery (DGPRAEC) expresses a more modest viewpoint.
"Mr. Mang contributes no advancements or publications in the medical realm nor does he train plastic surgeons in Germany or abroad, as far as we know," explains board member Nuri Alamuti. "Alex could not be described as a pioneer in this context." Mang's fame, suggests Alamuti, is largely a result of his media presence. He fails to meet the criteria required to become a member of the society, either.
Mang brushes off such criticism with a shrug. "There will always be jealous people," he says, grinning. "It's like politics – you can't be 'on top' and beloved by everyone." The German professional associations in the field of plastic surgery often grapple with division, he adds, so his exclusion from DGPRAEC doesn't bother him. "Success speaks for itself," Mang responds.
"Despite his exclusion from certain professional associations, Mang continues to see himself as a trailblazer in cosmetic surgery."
"However, when confronted with the lack of advancements or publications in the medical realm, Mang simply dismisses it as jealousy and emphasizes the power of his own success."
