Is oral care the new skincare?
Air Canada's new CEO speaks French, A $4,000 anti-inflammation retreat.
Good morning, everyone.
Over the last year, I’ve used every cleaning, chipped tooth, and popped wire as an excuse to get my dentist to weigh in on the wave of new oral care products on the market (completely normal patient behaviour). I arrive ready with screenshots—of toothpastes, brushes, floss, rinses, and picks—and he sends me away with a thumbs up or down. Brands that fail to pass usually have questionable or under-researched ingredients. My understanding is that I should then go and ask nine more dentists. I don’t have time for that, so I take his word for it.
The conversations I’ve been a part of around oral care kind of remind me of the shift we saw in skincare about 10 years ago. The connection between what happens in our mouths and the rest of our bodies has never been clearer, and the category is starting to evolve as new research in published, and customers and companies catch on. I’m curious about what the future looks like, so earlier this week I asked four founders in the space about what they think. I’m curious to know what you think too, and hope you’ll let me know in the comment section.
ASKING EXPERTS
“What will define the future of the oral care market?”
Steph Nightingale, Founder, Stimmie
“One of the biggest misconceptions in oral care is that better health comes from getting people to do more. In reality, most people know they should brush, floss, and see their dentist. The challenge has never been awareness, but fitting oral care into the (real life) moments between those habits, so I think the future will be less about asking people to overhaul their routines and more about designing products around their real behaviour. We’re already seeing consumers expect the same convenience, quality, thoughtful design, and everyday accessibility from oral care that they do from skincare, beauty, and wellness. What’s especially exciting is that oral health is becoming part of a broader conversation about overall health and daily wellbeing. As a clinician, I always speak on this, but now the rest of the world is finally catching on and people are starting to value the connection. The brands that succeed won’t just improve oral health, they’ll make healthy habits feel effortless.”
Alexandra Baker, Co-Founder of Bastét
“I think the mouth is the most under-served entry point in the whole wellness conversation. We optimize our gut, skin, and sleep, then brush our teeth with something we’ve never questioned. That’s going to change. What defines the next chapter is systemic thinking. The oral biome is the second largest microbiome in the body. The bacteria that live in your mouth don’t stay there: they travel, influence inflammation, and have documented relationships with cardiovascular disease and metabolic health. I think a similar boom to what we’re seeing in skincare is already happening: ingredient literacy is rising, people are disillusioned with legacy brands, and this category is aesthetically behind the rest of personal care. But oral health has a clinical authority problem that skincare doesn’t. People heavily defer to their dentists, who still recommend fluoride because the alternative evidence base, while strong, is not yet mainstream in dental education. The brands that help consumers have a better conversation with their dentist, rather than positioning against professional advice, will win.”
Gyve Safavi, Co-Founder of Suri
“I think the biggest shift we’ll see in oral care is a move away from treating it as a purely functional category, and towards seeing it as part of a broader health and wellness routine. People are becoming much more conscious of what they put in and on their bodies, and they’re starting to expect the same level of transparency, design and science from oral care that they already expect from skincare. One misconception that still exists is that sustainability and performance have to be a trade-off. The best products of the future will deliver clinically backed results while also dramatically reducing their environmental impact. Those two things should go hand in hand.”
Vishar Yaghoubian, Co-Founder of ToothPod
“I’ve been watching the oral care category since 2018, and it’s growing faster now than it ever has. The wave of new brands launching is validation that the mouth is an ecosystem, a longevity organ, and that balance matters. In 2018, I had to explain that with painstaking detail but now it’s the starting assumption. I’ve seen 10 new toothpaste and mouthwash brands launch in the past six months, all focused on making oral care more healthy and more beautiful, as it deserves to be. Toothpod focuses on balancing the oral microbiome and remineralization on the go, which is an absolute necessity alongside the solutions you keep at the sink.”
SKIM THIS
Anko Van der Werff, the CEO of Scandinavian airline SAS, will replace Michael Rousseau as CEO of Air Canada in early 2027. And yes, he speaks French—which was a persistent issue throughout Rousseau’s tenure.
Rogers will own the entirety of the Toronto Maple Leafs, Toronto Raptors, Toronto FC, and Toronto Argonauts after a deal to buy the remaining 25% stake in MLSE from Larry Tannenbaum’s Kilmer Sports for $4.35 billion.
23andMe has been ordered to pay nearly $47 million by a California judge to the 14,000 or so users affected by a 2023 data breach. The company filed for bankruptcy last year, about 18 months after the incident happened.
Joanna Griffiths is leaving Knix and selling her remaining stake. She announced her exit on Instagram this morning, confirming that the brand’s chief commercial officer, Nicole Tapscott, will take over as president later this summer. Joanna founded the company in 2013 and sold 80% of it to Essity for $430 million back in 2022, making her one of the most successful and recognizable Canadian entrepreneurs (a guest appearance on the last season of Dragons’ Den didn’t hurt). It was also the largest exit by a female founder in Canadian history. In the years since, Knix has laid out plans to expand to 28 stores across Canada and has opened its first location in New York City.
Some people are crediting RBC for saving Sneaky Dee’s. Development plans that would have approved a tower in place of the bar and live music venue have been withdrawn after a neighbouring branch was included.
This seems to be the summer of the cottage offsite. Simple Ventures just hosted employees and founders in Ontario’s cottage country, and I’ve heard about at least four other companies hosting similar gatherings this summer (which, I’d note, are mandatory). I think there’s a strong case for bringing back company retreats: the benefits of employees who actually like each other and are bought into one vision far outweigh the cost of a weekend Airbnb.
Greek yogurt shops love to see a week of 30-degree-heat. I was stunned to see the lines outside of these places in New York City last week, and spots like Kela Greek on St. Clair and Nosh & Go in the PATH are also booming. In somewhat related news, Mabel’s has installed coffee slushy machines at two locations.
I spent Monday night catching up with founders between restorative yoga and lymphatic massage sessions. A few credits at Trove will set you back $117, but the women I spoke to swore by the treatments that help regulate their nervous systems with their busy city lives. It made a Bloomberg article today about the business of anti-inflammation feel very relevant: Surrenne, a wellness club, hosted its first three-day anti-inflammatory retreat in April ($5,500) on the French Riviera. In Toronto, the Shangri-La rolled out summer programming with a wellness focus, including a $75 ice bath butler service and rooftop yoga for guests. Every day on social media, I see people using vibration plates or medical-grade red light devices. People are desperate for relief, or interested in optimization, and there are more options than ever.
I’m sorry but the silver of hope I had for Gander disappeared when Arlene Dickinson and Amber Mac left the picture. Hope I’m wrong!
Students are skipping corporate internships to join hacker houses and incubators. Young people faced with an uninspiring job market are especially primed to try and take the founder route, and while there are fewer spaces in Canada like this, there seems to be a growing interest for places where people can drop in and work on their ideas alongside others, especially during the summer. Wygo has started hosting Saturday morning working sessions, and Shopify expanded its co-working sessions to more Canadian offices this year.
Reader Tip: Mason Pearson hairbrushes are now stocked in Canada.
The patio at Maria’s Sports Bar has been busier than I’ve ever seen it. I attributed this to World Cup mania, but just learned from Lindsey King’s article in Toronto Life Graham Pratt, Mikey Kim and Adrian Montesdeoca (some of the names behind Bar Bowie and Milou) are responsible for the revival of the Little Italy spot, after taking over the space last year.
One of the most-read articles on The Wall Street Journal’s homepage this morning is about Canada’s role in reshaping the world economy. Nice.