Couple face new clinic challenge
Altona Myers at first refused to give Ross Tracy her number, yet now they’re in business and expecting a baby, writes Andrea Smith
‘One of the things I’ve learned is I’d be lost without Ross’
SOMETIMES it pays to stand out from the crowd, as Dr Altona Myers, a dentist and cosmetic facial aesthetician, discovered when she met her husband, Ross Tracy, five years ago in Krystal nightclub. Both were at their respective work Christmas parties, and Ross noticed Altona as she was wearing leather trousers and had a baseball hat on backwards, which he found refreshing in a sea of sparkly Christmas party dresses.
“Altona’s quirkiness immediately caught my eye, and she was jumping around the nightclub like an Energizer bunny,” says Ross. “I approached and asked for her number and she refused, and I even stole her hat, and eventually managed to persuade her friend to give her number to me.”
Ross texted Altona after that night, although she kept him on his toes by waiting a while to respond. Then they had one date in a driving range followed by dinner, before she went home to Killarney for Christmas. The date went well and Altona was impressed that Ross brought her somewhere outdoorsy and fun.
Altona went off to Australia for six weeks after Christmas and she and Ross Skyped every day and their relationship developed that way. “Altona’s personality drew me in as she was very sporty, ambitious and driven, and she was graced with good looks,” says Ross, who says that Altona is the anchor in their relationship.
The pair moved in together pretty quickly, along with Charlie, Altona’s Bichon/Maltese dog. Charlie was suspicious of interloper Ross initially, but has grown to like him. Ross proposed to Altona in 2016 after lighting hundreds of candles around the house, and after she accepted, they went for dinner and on to the Shelbourne bar, where Ross had arranged for lots of their friends to come along and celebrate with them. Luckily she said yes, he laughs, or he would have been very embarrassed cancelling them all.
They were married in Marbella, Spain, in September 2017 with 120 of their friends and family present, and had an amazing time. Ross (30) is from Leopardstown and is the youngest of Elaine and Des’s five children. He founded Boom 22, a tech/digital marketing agency in 2010 when he was 22. The company has won many awards and retains high-profile clients.
Kerrywoman Altona is also the youngest of five children, and daughter of Rena and Jerry. Her siblings include a vet — like her dad — two doctors, and another dentist. Her mum had an equestrian centre, Rocklands Riding Stables, and Altona was very sporty as a youngster, winning eight All-Ireland medals for Gaelic football, basketball and horse riding.
The pair now live in Blackrock, and they are thrilled to be expecting their first child in December — Christmas Eve to be precise — so Altona may be eating her festive dinner from a hospital bed. She doesn’t care as they are so excited about the baby.
Meanwhile, she has another ‘baby’ to focus on — her new clinic. Altona trained as a dentist at Trinity College and has worked at Seapoint Clinic for years, where she focused on cosmetic dentistry. She expanded into cosmetic facial rejuvenation some years ago, and did all of her training in aesthetics in London’s Harley Street. She’s also a qualified surgeon from the Royal College of Surgeons Ireland.
She has provided anti-wrinkle injections and dermal fillers, alongside dentistry services, to more than 2,000 patients in some of the leading dental and cosmetic practices, but, along with Ross, has now started her own clinic, Facial Rejuve, in Stillorgan. This was an idea that she and Ross conceived on their honeymoon, and they launched it in March.
The idea is that they want to create a more bespoke and boutique service that is focused on personal care and attention, rather than people just popping in and out for injections.
Altona wants to build a long-term relationship with clients, getting to know them and advising them on the ongoing maintenance of their natural beauty, and the wide range of potential enhancements, including botox and fillers, lip and cheek augmentation and medical micro needling available. She also deals with hair restoration and skin rejuvenation, and is very keen to educate people about skin. Altona is keeping her hand in with dentistry too, and is still working part-time at Seapoint.
Ross has worked with a lot of pharma companies, dentistry clinics and healthcare providers, and his input has been invaluable in launching the new business.
He has become very interested in the whole area of cosmetic rejuvenation himself and studies everything he can get his hands on around the subject. He says that the biggest asset the company has is Altona, as she is very personable and has built up great client relationships already.
“Married life is going great and our relationship is stronger than ever,” says Altona, who admits that she can’t cook and Ross is the chef of the household.
“We really complement each other, and one of the things I’ve learned is that I’d be lost without Ross. He is very strong, loyal and calming, and is always there to solve any problems. My job is all go and he makes me take time out to relax and he keeps me grounded.”