Company: ALGN
Filing Date: 2025-02-28
Form Type: 10-K
Source: 0001097149-25-000012
Chunk: 97

Company: ALIGN TECHNOLOGY INC
Filing Date: 2025-02-28
Form: 10-K
Item: Item 7
Chunk 97
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 System treatment driving more consumers to dental professionals for those treatments.

•Pursuing new product lines that complement our doctor-prescribed principal products currently available in certain e-commerce and retail channels in the United States. Similarly, in 2024, we continued our focus on our doctor subscription plan and grew our underpenetrated share of the retainer business through strategic marketing campaigns focused on driving adoption and increasing market share.

•Increasing global orthodontic utilization rates as doctors’ clinical confidence in the efficacy and predictability of the Invisalign System increases with advancements in products and technology and as patients and doctors demand treatments that emphasize convenience and safety through fewer visits and less invasive and quicker treatments. In addition, the teenage and younger market makes up about 70% of the approximately 22 million total annual global orthodontic case starts. We continue to emphasize the benefits of the Invisalign System for teenage and younger patient treatments through education, training and sales and marketing programs. In 2024, we had record shipments to teenage and younger patients. We expect utilization rates to continue to rise. However, our utilization rates will fluctuate from period to period due to a variety of factors, which may include seasonal trends in our business, consumer demand due to macroeconomic factors, and adoption rates for new products and features.

Below is a discussion of the significant trends and uncertainties that could impact our operations:

Macroeconomic Challenges and Military Conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East 

Our revenues are susceptible to fluctuations resulting from events and circumstances, including macroeconomic conditions, fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates, inflation, higher interest rates, actual and threatened wars and military actions, threats or actual imposition of tariffs, customs duties and fees by nations and retaliatory actions, threats of or actual slowdowns or recessions, supply chain challenges, market volatility, employment levels, wages, debt obligations, discretionary income and other factors, each of which impacts customer confidence, consumer sentiment and demand. Many of these same factors also impact our costs and those of our suppliers through higher raw material prices, transportation costs, labor costs, supply and distribution operations. During 2024, we believe sales of our products were adversely impacted by macroeconomic conditions that negatively affected disposable income and consumer demand. We believe this trend will continue in 2025. We also expect the military conflict between Russia and Ukraine to continue to create market uncertainties and dampen consumer sentiment and demand, particularly in Europe. 

Additionally, government actions in various countries relating to implemented or proposed tariffs, particularly the United States, China,