March 14, 2019
ALGN, 3Shape A/S, Allesee Orthodontic Appliances Inc., HSIC, MMM, Protec Dental Laboratories Ltd., SDC, STMN SW, SmileDirectClub LLC, Specialty Appliances Inc., XRAY

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SOURCES AND BACKGROUND

47 U.S. providers of clear orthodontic aligners (45 Invisalign providers, 2 former Invisalign providers), comprising 28 orthodontic practices and 19 dental practices, representing nearly 5,000 Invisalign case starts in 2018
REPEAT SOURCES 20 from OTR Global’s December report
INTERVIEWS Feb. 19 through March 8
AVERAGES Weighted where appropriate according to total Invisalign cases started in 2018

U.S. Invisalign providers’ estimates for 2019 case starts have softened slightly since December because of growing competition from other aligner brands as well as other Invisalign providers.

  • ALGN providers' 2019 case starts expected up 11%–16% yy (vs. December forecast of up 13%–18%); proportion of providers' teen cases using ALGN stable qq
  • 13 of 47 providers offering competing aligner brands (vs. 3 of 36 in December), including 7 using competing aligners only in simple cases; 3 sources still satisfied with MMM
  • ALGN discounting Express 5 aligners (used for simple cases); 5 sources increased their own discounting qq to compete with other ALGN providers
  • Area to Watch: 17 of 29 providers neutral/mixed on ALGN store closures, but 8 positive because they perceive move as safeguarding provider margins, brand image
by Sara Stahl