toothsi, a Mumbai-based at-home smile makeover brand, has raised $9 million (Rs 66.6 crore) in a debt funding round led by Stride ventures.
In an official statement, the startup said it plans to invest in modern and consumer-facing technologies and automation. Currently present in 11 cities across the country, the firm also aims to expand its geographic footprint, strengthen the brand and create a clinical beauty category in India.
Arpi Mehta, Cofounder and CEO, Toothsi
Dr Arpi Mehta, Co-founder and CEO, toothsi, said,
“We’ve carved out a niche for ourselves in the Indian market in just three years, and our business has expanded five-fold. We aim to leverage our health tech doctor directed platform to provide Indians the opportunity to improve their appearance and feel more confident in social situations. Our partnership with Stride Ventures will enable us to reach new heights and enhance customer experience.”
Founded in 2018 by Dr Arpi Mehta, Dr Pravin Shetty, Dr Manjul Jain and Dr Anirudh Kale, the company is committed to providing Indians a better smile with its clear aligners, a convenient alternative to conventional braces at the comfort of their home. It uses clear aligner technology that is built in-house to design customized aligners as per each customers’ requirements.
The dental tech company claims to have designed over 65,000 smile makeover plans with a team of veteran orthodontists and dentists, tech experts, and business-minded professionals. It recorded 5x year-on-year growth in FY 2021.
Ishpreet Singh Gandhi, Founder and Managing Partner, Stride Ventures, added,
“This partnership with toothsi is our latest endeavour towards engaging with more new-age healthcare startups. The stellar growth shown by the company is a testament to their team’s commitment to excellence. Their disruptive solution to orthodontic issues in the form of customisable invisible aligners has been creating waves in this consumer-driven space and has captured 35 percent market share.”
In addition to orthodontic products, toothsi offers a wide array of oral care products such as new age sonic toothbrushes, advanced teeth whitening products which use enamel-safe ingredients, and aligner accessories thus creating a formidable portfolio of both services and products. Diversifying its expertise in the skincare space, toothsi introduced a sister brand, Skinnsi which offers laser hair removal services and skin treatments at home. Skinnsi plans to build an elaborate portfolio of cosmetic dermatology services in the near future.
toothsi raised $5 million in Series A funding in January last year from Think Investments – a San Francisco-based hedge fund, the family office of JM Financial’s Nimesh Kampani, Siddharth Shah, Co-founder and CEO at API Holdings (Ascent Health), and Ramakant Sharma, Co-founder and COO of Livspace. Later the same year, it received $20 million in B funding from Eight Roads Ventures, Think Investments, and the Mankekar Family Office.