Developed in cooperation with a team of periodontists and bioengineers at the University of Washington in Seattle, USA, Sonicare’s success is due to one key factor – user experience has confirmed that it works. More than 60 published studies and abstracts conducted at 25 universities worldwide have proven the Sonicare power toothbrush to be highly effective in fundamental areas of oral health, such as plaque removal, gum health and stain removal.

The early years
Sonicare was the brainchild of David Giuliani, a successful entrepreneur with a background in electrical engineering. In 1987, together with University of Washington professors David Engel and Roy Martin, he formed a company, eventually known as Optiva Corporation Inc., to promote a new, innovative dental hygiene device based on sonic technology, inspired by the technology used in dental practices.

In the five years that followed, they refined that technology, and introduced Sonicare at a periodontal convention in Florida in 1992. The first periodontist to visit the booth ordered 36 of them on the spot! Within just three years, Optiva Corporation was, according to Inc. Magazine, the fastest-growing private company in the United States.

Sonicare worldwide In October 2000, Philips Domestic Appliances and Personal Care (DAP), a division of Royal Philips Electronics, acquired Optiva Corporation Inc – now known as Philips Oral Healthcare. Sonicare fits perfectly into Philips’ overall strategy to focus on healthcare, lifestyle and technology, and the acquisition immediately put the company at the leading edge of new innovations in oral healthcare.

Philips Oral Healthcare used its research and development know-how to create the next generation of power toothbrushes – the Sonicare Elite.

October 2002 saw the launch of the Sonicare Elite, described by Forbes Global as ‘the Rolls-Royce of the power-toothbrush market’, at the American Dental Association annual meeting in October 2002. By 2003, it was booking its first success in Europe. In the UK, Sonicare rapidly became one of the best selling electric toothbrushes in the market. The launches in the Netherlands, Belgium, France and Germany were received with great enthusiasm, confirming that Sonicare is giving a completely new impulse to the electric toothbrush market. Just four months after its retail launch in the Netherlands, for example, Sonicare had already acquired 21% of the power toothbrush market.