The archive · Consumer Apps · Product decision · 2022-2026
SURI bets a repairable toothbrush can beat Oral-B and Philips; £24M brand, 7,900% growth
London DTC brand SURI bets design-first sustainability can crack a toothbrush duopoly; £10M sales in year two, 7,900% search growth by Aug 2026.
SURI (Sustainable Rituals)
What the business is
A London DTC personal-care brand selling a recyclable, repairable sonic toothbrush (aluminium handle, plant-based head) with subscriptions and accessories, distributed via its own site, Amazon and retail.
How it started
Gyve Safavi and Mark Rushmore, Procter & Gamble alumni who had worked on Oral-B and Gillette, reconnected in 2020 with a plan for a toothbrush made from cornstarch, castor oil and aluminium. More than 20 manufacturers rejected the concept as impossible; one factory in China eventually agreed, and the pair raised £800K from angels and Salica to fund the first 5,000 brushes.
What happened
SURI launched in May 2022 and its first run sold out in three days, the second in two weeks. It raised £2M in seed funding and then a £6M Series A in March 2024 co-led by JamJar (Innocent Drinks founders) and V3 Ventures with DMG Ventures and Hambro Perks. Sales passed £10M in 2023, and by 2025 the brand had grown to £24M scale with 37 employees; sales split roughly 60% DTC, 20% Amazon and 20% retail, with about 45% of revenue coming from the US. Boots, Goop and Erewhon stocked the brush, and designer Jony Ive became a public fan.
How it ended up
Still scaling: SURI expanded beyond toothbrushes into toothpaste refills, kept growing US retail and DTC, and saw search interest surge - Exploding Topics ranked 'Suri Toothbrush' #51 on its August 2026 US trending-topics list with 7,900% five-year search growth.
Background
SURI is a London personal-care brand founded in May 2022 by Gyve Safavi (CEO) and Mark Rushmore (CCO), former Procter & Gamble staff who had worked on Oral-B and Gillette. Its flagship product is a recyclable, repairable sonic toothbrush with an aluminium handle and plant-based head, sold DTC, on Amazon and through retail, with subscription refills.
The bet was that sustainability could win in a category where two incumbents controlled about 75% of the market - if the product matched them on performance and design instead of asking consumers to compromise. More than 20 manufacturers rejected the concept; one factory in China agreed, and £800K from angels and Salica funded the first 5,000 brushes, which sold out in three days after the May 2022 launch.
Capital followed traction: £2M in seed funding, then a £6M Series A in March 2024 co-led by JamJar and V3 Ventures with DMG Ventures and Hambro Perks. Sales exceeded £10M in 2023 and reached £24M brand scale with 37 employees by 2025, with roughly 60% DTC, 20% Amazon and 20% retail and about 45% of revenue from the US. Boots, Goop and Erewhon stocked the brush.
Search interest confirms the brand's momentum: Exploding Topics ranked 'Suri Toothbrush' #51 on its August 2026 US trending-topics list with 7,900% five-year search growth. SURI has since expanded into toothpaste refills and new products, betting the same design-first sustainability formula can spread beyond oral care.
What has to be true
- Two incumbents controlled ~75% of the toothbrush market, leaving a design-savvy challenger room to win consumers who hated plastic waste (Enterprise Nation, Jan 2025).
- Performance parity came first: founders were P&G Oral-B/Gillette alumni, so SURI matched incumbents on function and looks rather than selling ethics alone (City AM, Mar 2024).
- The economics worked early: £3M first-year sales, £10M+ in year two, then £24M brand scale by 2025, with 60% DTC protecting margins (TFN; BM Magazine, Sep 2025).
- Search demand is concrete: 'Suri Toothbrush' ranked #51 with 7,900% five-year search growth on Exploding Topics' August 2026 US list.
What can be applied
A challenger can crack a duopoly by matching incumbents on performance and design before leading with ethics; sustainability converts only when the product is not a compromise.
Aftermath
As of September 2026 SURI is an independent, founder-led brand still scaling from London. It had grown to £24M brand scale with 37 employees by September 2025 (BM Magazine), had expanded into toothpaste refills and new products visible on its site, and continued its US push, where about 45% of sales came from. Retail placements include Boots, Goop and Erewhon, and Exploding Topics ranked 'Suri Toothbrush' #51 on its August 2026 US trending-topics list with 7,900% five-year search growth.
Sources
- SURI: The toothbrush brand backed by Innocent Drinks' founders
- Carbon-neutral sonic toothbrush SURI swings £6M Series A to drive growth and innovation
- Believing in your mission - with the co-founders of SURI
- Suri founders banish toothbrush gunk with sustainable design and build £24m brand
- Top Trending Topics (Aug 2026)
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