SmileDirectClub, an oral care specialist that leveraged dozens of HP 3D printing technology for the production of aligners, made the difficult decision to wind down its global operations.
“SmileDirectClub has made the incredibly difficult decision to wind down its global operations, effective immediately. For new customers interested in SmileDirectClub services, thank you for your interest, but aligner treatment is no longer available through our telehealth platform. For existing customers, we apologize for the inconvenience, but customer care support is no longer available. Thank you for your support and letting us improve over 2 million smiles and lives,” the company states on its website.
The dental company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in September 2023 with nearly $900 million of debt. Founded in 2014, it was initially an exclusive third-party distributor of Align Technology’s aligner products. However, following a legal dispute, it changed its business model and became a direct-to-consumer supplier of aligners itself.
As a strong advocate of AM, SmileDirectClub served over 2 million customers worldwide through its online store and in its shops but it didn’t really benefit from the COVID-19 pandemic e-commerce boom.
While the company is not an AM technology provider, it should be noted that it’s the second company that went public after integrating Additive Manufacturing into its workflows, and filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The first one was Fast Radius and its assets were later on acquired by SyBridge Technologies in a $15.9M deal
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