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NASHVILLE — Just months after filing for bankruptcy, SmileDirectClub announced it was shutting down its global operations and halting its teeth-aligner treatments.
SmileDirectClub — which served over 2 million people since its 2014 founding — once promised to revolutionize the oral-care industry by selling clear dental aligners that were marketed as a faster and more affordable alternative to braces. It sold its aligners directly to consumers by mail and in major retailers including CVS.
The company is offering no more customer care support and few details about possible refunds are available yet.
Multiple dental organizations and orthodontists also caution patients about safety concerns arising from “direct-to-consumer” dentistry.
When SmileDirectClub’s stock began trading on the stock market in 2019, the company was valued at about $8.9 billion. But the stock plummeted in value over time as the company proved to be unprofitable year after year. In 2022, SmileDirectClub lost $86.4 million.
The Nashville, Tennessee, company said that more details about refund requests will arrive “once the bankruptcy process determines next steps and additional measures customers can take.”
