Impress, the European leader in the orthodontic sector, today announced a $125M Series B funding round. The first closing of 100M was made this week, helping to propel the company’s expansion into new markets as well as cement its #1 position in existing markets. The company is on track to make the second closing of $25M within 60 days. Impress completely redesigned the invisible aligner industry by building a hybrid, tech-driven orthodontic clinics. Something the clear aligner industry has missed until now.
Impress was founded in 2019 in Barcelona by renowned orthodontist Dr. Khaled Kasem and serial entrepreneurs Diliara and Vladimir Lupenko, with the idea of combining the best of orthodontic tradition with the most innovative technology in the sector.
In just 3 years Impress has become the number one brand and category leader in Europe. The company already has more than 130 clinics across 8 different countries, including all strategic markets: the UK, Spain, Italy, Germany, and France, creating a unique and scalable business model with a strong base of proven success.
Impress HQ is in Barcelona, and it has a global team of 1,000 employees, of which 500 of its team are medical professionals specialised in orthodontics.
Technology is one of the main pillars of Impress. The digital orthodontic brand has a growing network of hybrid clinics and is leveraged by a top tier clinical team, vertically integrated tech stack (AI-driven Management Practice Software, patented treatment planning software, and best-in-class AI driven treatment monitoring App). Recently Impress also put into operation one of the largest European R&D and clear aligner production facility.
While DTC models keep losing credibility, Impress has bet on the hybrid model having own tech-enabled orthodontic clinics since the very beginning. This has led to industry-leading sales conversion rates, an exceptional customer experience (NPS 84), and best-in-class clinical outcomes, all driven by a tech stack that is getting harder to replicate by the day. Even though the company was founded just 3 years ago, 80% of the clinics are already profitable and show a very strong growth.
“We created a new orthodontic experience powered by tech. All the processes are fully digitalised thanks to Impress’ own product and software. This accomplishment would not have been possible without close contact between our patients and medical team, because this is the only way we can understand their needs and expectations”, says Diliara Lupenko, Co-founder and COO of Impress.
Impress has developed a mobile application to deliver outstanding customer experience whenever our patients want to be. With the use of the app, they connect 24/7 their patients with their doctors, make remote scans, book appointments across their clinic portfolio and refer friends and family to Impress. Most recently, Impress has introduced a new paid subscription model to provide current and non-Impress customers with post-treatment oral care services such as medical procedures, checkups, and consultations from the team of orthodontics experts. In the first month after launch Impress onboarded 1,000 patients, while it’s planned to sell 20,000 subscriptions in the next 12 months. Now 2 subscription tiers are available starting from just €12.5 per month.
The fresh financing will be used for further expansion in Europe (organic and M&A), further investment in tech and extending of the in-house production facility. “We are building the global leader in next-generation orthodontics”, emphasises Lupenko.
Valéry Huot, Partner Head of Venture at LBO France, said: “Impress is disrupting the orthodontics market while maintaining medical excellence and patient care at highest level. We are thrilled to join Impress shareholder base and contribute to its fantastic scale-up.”
Peter Stein, executive chairman at Norgine Ventures, said: “We are very excited by our investment in Impress. The clear aligner market represents an attractive growth opportunity. With this investment, we support a company that, since its inception in 2019, has achieved significant growth and geographical expansion, with a differentiated offering focusing on quality of care, patient journey and operational efficiency, and is well positioned to further grow and capture a significant share of the market.”
