Toothsi parent MakeO raises ₹90 crore to grow in India, Southeast Asia

What did MakeO actually do with the ₹90 crore? Did they buy something?

Not yet. The Rs 90 crore, led by Singularity AMC, is earmarked for opening more physical clinics and strengthening manufacturing in India and Southeast Asia. MakeO is also scouting dental and aligner businesses to buy in those regions, but has named no targets. The funding follows its deals for Zenyum and Apple Dental.

Why is the company moving to physical clinics when it began online?

Toothsi started as a direct-to-consumer aligner brand with home scans and remote monitoring. But treatments last months and need check-ups and follow-ups, which clinics provide. Offline centres also bring in more revenue per customer through in-clinic care. The shift lets MakeO serve more complex cases and sell beyond aligners.

What is MakeO's manufacturing edge in this expansion?

MakeO runs its own 3D printing facility in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region with annual capacity of over a million aligners. Making aligners in-house removes import duties, licensing fees, and distributor markups, which lets Toothsi price aligners at roughly one-third of global brands like Invisalign (starting around ₹52,999). This manufacturing base also feeds exports across 10 countries through the Toothsi and Zenyum networks, so the new clinics and acquisitions plug into an existing supply line rather than building one from scratch.

Why is the in-house factory the real advantage when acquiring clinics abroad?

MakeO's own 3D printing facility in Mumbai produces over a million aligners annually, with a cost edge built on removing import duties and distributor markups. Buying Zenyum gave it distribution across 10 countries, and acquiring clinics like Apple Dental gives it places to deliver treatment. The factory means every new clinic it buys can sell aligners at roughly a third of global brand prices without building new supply. Our read: the acquisitions are really distribution deals for the factory's output, not bets on clinic profits alone.

Why is the factory edge worth less than it looks?

MakeO's own 3D printing plant can make over a million aligners a year, and the company says this removes import duties and distributor markups that push global brands like Invisalign to roughly three times Toothsi's starting price of ₹52,999. But the same homegrown supply needs clinic visits, scans, and follow-ups to deliver treatment, and those service costs are not covered by the factory's low unit price. The ₹500 crore combined revenue is a company claim, unaudited, and the ₹90 crore round covers only about 18% of one year's sales. Our read: the factory's margin is real, but the clinics it feeds decide whether that margin turns into profit.

What did the factory and clinics cost MakeO before this round?

MakeO reported losses of ₹220 crore in FY23 and ₹150 crore in FY24, with expenses of ₹395 crore and ₹332 crore in those years. Employee costs were its largest expense, at ₹127 crore in FY23, and marketing spend reached ₹91 crore that year, when it brought on Virat Kohli and Anushka Sharma for ads. Its FY24 revenue was only ₹179 crore, so the losses came from spending far more than it earned. Those are audited filings from before its Zenyum merger, so the ₹500 crore combined figure is a newer, unaudited claim without a breakdown. Our read: the factory and clinics are new bets on top of a business that has not yet covered its own costs.

Who actually pays for all these new clinics and acquisitions?

The ₹90 crore round covers only about 18% of one year's revenue, so the clinics and acquisitions are funded mostly from operations, not this round alone. MakeO says its combined business crossed ₹500 crore in revenue and turned EBITDA profitable in 2026, but that profit is before interest, taxes, and depreciation. After the Zenyum merger, the company called its India business at breakeven, with no audited breakdown of the combined figures. Our read: existing revenue and fresh investor money together carry the expansion, and the EBITDA claim is what keeps new investors coming.

What makes the factory's low price actually reachable for the merged regional business?

MakeO's Mumbai factory can make over a million aligners a year at roughly a third of global prices, but those aligners only reach customers through dentists. The Zenyum merger brought a network of around 1,100 partner dentists across 10 countries, and Apple Dental added 20 clinics in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Without that network, the factory's output would have no delivery channel in Southeast Asia. The aligner is one cost layer; the dentist who fits it and monitors treatment is the second, and the clinic rent is the third. Our read: the factory price is what makes the dentist network viable, not the other way around.

What decides whether this expansion works?

MakeO was burning cash for years, posting losses in FY23 and FY24. It now claims EBITDA profitability, but that's before interest, taxes, and depreciation. The real test is whether the new clinics and acquisitions generate enough cash to cover them. Watch if net profit follows EBITDA, and whether the combined business maintains that.

What stops a global brand from undercutting that factory price?

Global brands like Invisalign carry layered costs, including import duties, licensing fees and distributor markups, that Toothsi's in-house manufacturing removes. The Price comparison holds at the consumer level, with Toothsi starting at ₹52,999 against roughly three times that for foreign brands. To match that price, a global player would need its own local factory and direct distribution, which would mean undoing its existing offline channel model. The report does not address whether such a move is coming, so this edge rests on the factory staying cheaper to run.

Why does a profitable-looking business still need fresh investor money?

MakeO says its combined business crossed Rs 500 crore in revenue and turned EBITDA profitable in 2026. But EBITDA excludes interest, taxes, depreciation, and the cash spent on opening clinics and buying companies. In FY24 alone, the pre-merger business lost Rs 150 crore on Rs 179 crore of revenue, with Rs 332 crore of expenses. The Rs 90 crore round covers only about 18% of one year's sales, so it is not funding the whole expansion. Our read: the company needs this round to keep the clinic-opening pace going while operations are still not generating enough cash to cover it.

What made MakeO a regional company, not just Indian?

MakeO's February acquisition of Singapore's Zenyum turned it from an India-focused aligner brand into a regional dental company. Zenyum brought in markets like Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam, Japan, Taiwan and Hong Kong. The combined group now has roughly 1,100 partner dentists across 10 countries; before the deal, MakeO's reach was mostly India.

Where will the money for this expansion actually come from?

The ₹90 crore round is small against the ₹500 crore revenue base, about 18% of one year's sales. The company also inked deals for Apple Dental and Zenyum in the prior two years, so much of that revenue was built through stock swaps and cash deals, not this round. MakeO claims EBITDA profitability since early 2026, which gives it operating cash to fund clinic openings and acquisitions. Our read: the round is top-up capital, and the real engine for doubling revenue is the existing business's own cash flow, not fresh investor money.

Why does doubling revenue require buying other dental chains?

Buying clinics is the fastest way to add offline centres, which is where MakeO earns more per customer through in-clinic care, and they extend reach beyond big cities, as Apple Dental's 20 clinics in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana showed. Zenyum brought a partner-dentist network across Southeast Asia that would take years to build organically. The company says it is also evaluating more acquisitions of dental and aligner businesses in both regions, making M&A a core part of its stated plan, not an option.

Did the Zenyum deal actually close? What did MakeO get?

Yes, the deal closed. Neither side disclosed the price, but the combined group now has around 1,100 partner dentists across 10 countries, more than 60 offline clinical centres, and has served over 4 lakh consumers. Before this, MakeO's reach was mostly India; Zenyum brought in Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam, Japan, Taiwan and Hong Kong.

Why is MakeO buying clinics instead of just building them?

MakeO's own fundraising history shows why. It burned through cash for years, posting losses of Rs 220 crore in FY23 and Rs 150 crore in FY24 before shrinking costs. Building clinics from scratch takes time and capital, while buying existing chains like Apple Dental, acquired for Rs 10.9 crore, brings immediate revenue and patient bases. The company aims to double its 60 offline centres to over 120, and acquisitions accelerate that. Our read: buying clinics is faster and cheaper than building them, especially when the company still needs to prove it can turn EBITDA profit into real net profit.

Why does the clinic expansion need acquisitions at all?

Clinic building is slower and more capital-intensive than buying an existing chain with patients and revenue already attached. Apple Dental, acquired for Rs 10.9 crore, brought 20 clinics in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, extending MakeO's reach beyond major Indian cities. Zenyum brought Southeast Asian markets and a product line. MakeO says it aims to double offline centres to over 120, and it continues to scout acquisitions. However, its Rs 90 crore fundraise is only about 18% of annual revenue, and much of that must also cover manufacturing and technology. Our read: the fresh capital mostly seeds purchases, while clinic income funds the build-out of what acquisitions bring in.

How does MakeO keep aligners affordable while opening costly clinics?

MakeO's pricing edge comes from manufacturing, not clinics. Its own 3D printing facility in Mumbai, with capacity for over a million aligners a year, removes import duties, licensing fees, and distributor markups that inflate rivals' prices. That's why Toothsi aligners start around Rs 53,000, about three times cheaper than global brands. Clinics add overhead, but they also raise revenue per customer through in-clinic services beyond aligners. The bet is that manufacturing savings fund the clinic expansion without forcing prices up.

How risky is doubling revenue this fast?

MakeO turned EBITDA profitable only this year, after years of losses: Rs 220 crore in FY23 and Rs 150 crore in FY24. EBITDA excludes interest, taxes, depreciation, and the cost of new clinics and acquisitions. Doubling revenue from Rs 500 crore to roughly Rs 1,000 crore in two to three years, partly by buying clinics, adds integration costs and depreciation before net profit can appear. The company's own claims are unaudited. Our read: the faster it expands, the harder it will be to convert EBITDA profit into net profit.