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 Wiping her face with a cotton pad after a Botox injection, the
49-year-old supermarket worker said she has cut down on petrol and
entertainment to afford the treatments, which make the skin appear
smoother by temporarily paralyzing muscles.
"I want to look at myself in the mirror and feel good. I'm afraid of
aging," Vorlioti said. "Work, the crisis, they push you down and you
want something uplifting."
She is not the only one seeking solace in beauty treatments amid a
financial crisis that cut hundreds of thousands of jobs cut, slashed
salaries and caused a sharp decline in life satisfaction among
Greeks.
In fact, it seems Greece is undergoing what has been dubbed the
"lipstick effect", where consumers turn to low cost beauty to boost
their mood during economic depressions.
Non-surgical procedures in Greece soared to more than 220,000 in
2016 compared to around 61,000 in 2010, the biggest jump in Europe
in the six-year period, according to data by the International
Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ISAPS).
At between 80 and 150 euros a pop, it doesn't come cheap for Greeks,
who earn an average net monthly income of about 780 euros. Some,
like Vorlioti, need to save up for months in order to be able to
afford a treatment and yet more are choosing to have them, doctors
say.
"The crisis has brought new people to the doctor's doorstep, people
who wouldn't come before, both men and women who are struggling and
want to improve their looks to feel better," said Lia Papadavid, a
dermatologist.
"It's like giving themselves a present," she told Reuters shortly
after giving a middle-aged female a filler injection around her
eyes.
The rise in Greece follows a world-wide upward trend in non-surgical
procedures. It ranked 14th in the world among the top 24 countries
in terms of volume of non surgical treatments in 2016, behind
countries such as Italy and Germany but above Belgium, according to
ISAPS.
Surgical treatments, which can cost thousands of euros, are up only
10 percent since 2010.
"LOVE YOURSELF"
Waiting her turn at the Athens Aurum medical center, 43-year-old
Eleni says she turned to injectables in 2013 and has not stopped
despite the crisis.
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"No one has money to spare, everyone is being pressured right now
with the crisis, some less, some more. I think it needs a bit of
planning, and to love yourself."
Investment in the beauty industry doubled between 2009-2015, said
the Hellenic Federation of Enterprises in a July report.
New nail bars and beauty centers have popped up in central Athens
and in the central Syntagma square, young men and women are seen
handing out flyers advertising discounts on cosmetic services to
passers-by.
Chairman of the ISAPS Education Council Paraskevas Kontoes said the
surge in non invasive treatments could be explained by their low
cost, better results thanks to new technology and people needing to
boost their self-esteem battered by years of crisis.
Non surgical beauty treatments are fast enough to have in a lunch
break, but their effects are only temporary. Results can last eight
months or longer depending on the product, Dr Stefanos Stathakis
said.
He also said most people choose treatments for the face, tying in
with other doctors' reports that their clients believe they can help
them score better in a job interview, particularly as competition
for jobs in Greece is fierce.
"They believe it will become easier for them to get a job," said
Vorlioti's dermatologist Froso Saksioni. "People struggle and come
here for a change. If you charge them a fortune for a treatment it's
like giving them a slap instead."
As Saksioni prepares for "a vampire lift", where the doctor
withdraws and then reinjects a patient's blood to erase wrinkles,
Vorlioti books her next appointment.
"I've decided to cut down on everything else to do this", she said.
"When I feel good about myself, I think it shows."
(Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky)
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