ABSTRACT
This business plan was created to determine the feasibility of starting a business in the clear aligners industry in Taiwan. In the last few years, Align Technology has seen their patents expire on their widely successful and lucrative product, Invisalign. Recently a number of companies have entered the U.S. market to much fanfare and their resulting offerings look to be gaining market share and influence. Seeing as Taiwan currently only offers the expensive Invisalign product, I see an opportunity to undercut their business and offer a near identical product at a fraction of the price.
Smiles Aligned will be an online, teledentistry business that aims to provide its customers with clear aligners to move and straighten their teeth at a fraction of the cost that’s typically required of either traditional braces or the more expensive Invisalign system. We also plan on offering ancillary products that are complementary to the dental industry such as teeth whitening, retainers, anti-snore devices, and possibly even an affiliate program to allow other dental products to reach our customers.
Our products will be aggressively marketed through our website which will also be the main point of contact for sales and customer support. Customers will be encouraged to create a profile on our website to order an impressions kit which when mailed back, will allow us to generate a 3D form of their mouth. If they prefer a more hands on approach, we will help
them make an appointment with a partner dentist who will determine if they’re an applicable candidate for our company, and if so, will take a 3D form of their mouth and send it to us.
We plan on utilizing social networking and various influencers to market our product to young adults and professionals. We will also offer a bonus program to dentists for referring paying customers to our company and for being a partner in helping us to 3D scan customers mouths.
Our plan to compete with traditional orthodontists’ offerings of braces and Invisalign on price and availability while keeping the highest quality is our main drive. Our overall strategy to penetrate the market will encompass the following:
Consumer education to create awareness of our product, showcase the quality of our product, and assuage customers fears of our non-traditional orthopedics experience.

Table of Contents
ABSTRACT ............................................................ I
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS ......................................................... V
LIST OF FIGURES AND TABLES ..................................... VI
1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY................................ 1
1.1 MARKET ANALYSIS .............................................. 1
1.2 MARKET SEGMENTATION .................. 2
1.3 PRODUCTS AND SERVICES ........................ 4
1.4 FINANCIAL CONSIDERATIONS .................... 4
2. COMPANY INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND ................... 6
2.1 BUSINESS SUMMARY ....... 6
2.2 POSITIONING AND OPPORTUNITIES ........................ 6
2.3 PERSONNEL ARRANGEMENT ............................................. 8
3. PRODUCTS AND SERVICES ................................ 11
3.1 PRODUCTS AND SERVICES PROVIDED ............................. 11
3.1.1 PRODUCTS OFFERED ............................ 11
3.1.2 SERVICES OFFERED ............................ 11
3.2 PRICING STRATEGY .................................. 12
3.3 VALUE PROPOSITION .................................. 15
3.4 ANTICIPATED DEMAND ..................... 15
3.5 PORTER’S FIVE FORCES ................................. 16
4. TACTICAL MARKETING ............................................................................................. 21
4.1 MARKETING PLAN ........................................................................................................... 21
4.2 CUSTOMER MANAGEMENT................................................................................................ 23
4.3 TARGET CONSUMERS ....................................................................................................... 24
5. OPERATIONS............................................................................................................ 25
5.1 ORGANIZATIONAL CHART .................................................................................................. 25
5.1.1 KEY PERSONNEL ........................................................................................................ 25
5.2 MANAGEMENT AND OWNERSHIP ........................................................................................ 27
5.3 CUSTOMER PURCHASE EXPERIENCE ..................................................................................... 27
5.4 PRODUCTION PROCESS ..................................................................................................... 28
5.4.1 INVENTORY ............................................................................................................. 31
5.4.2 START-UP PLANT AND EQUIPMENT ............................................................................... 32
5.4.3 TECHNOLOGY ........................................................................................................... 32
5.4.3.1 HARDWARE ....................................................................................................... 33
5.4.3.2 SOFTWARE ........................................................................................................ 33
5.4.3.3 WEBSITE ........................................................................................................... 34
5.4.4 QUALITY CONTROL .................................................................................................... 35
5.5 PAYMENT OPTIONS ......................................................................................................... 35
5.6 FUTURE OPERATIONS ....................................................................................................... 36
6. RISK MANAGEMENT ................................................................................................ 38
6.1 RISK ASSESSMENT ........................................................................................................... 38
6.2 LEGALITY ....................................................................................................................... 38
7. FINANCIALS ............................................................................................................. 40
7.1 ASSUMPTIONS ................................................................................................................ 40
7.2 PROJECTED START-UP COSTS ............................................................................................. 41
7.3 BALANCE SHEET FORECAST ................................................................................................ 42
7.4 PROFIT AND LOSS FORECAST .............................................................................................. 43
7.5 EXPECTED CASH FLOW ..................................................................................................... 46
7.6 BREAK-EVEN ANALYSIS ..................................................................................................... 49
REFERENCES ........................................................................................................................ 50
APPENDICES ........................................................................................................................ 52
APPENDIX 1 – SURVEY QUESTIONS .................................................................................. 52

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