Ordo used Squishmallows to prove sell-through at CVS, then landed Wicked and Minions licenses. The strategy drove $1.6M in Squishmallow sales in 12 weeks and 85% of U.S. revenue from kids' products.
Alpha Score of 60 reflects moderate overall profile with strong momentum, moderate value, weak quality, moderate sentiment.
Ordo needed a character kids recognized to break into the children's oral care market, Marketing Director Emma Harnett said. The U.K. brand, which launched in 2019, faced a category dominated by Philips and Oral-B. Its solution: lead with licensed children's products to build brand awareness in the U.S.
"To drive brand awareness takes a lot of dollars," Harnett said. "Being able to work with a franchise and a licensed partner that already has that weight behind it in terms of its fandom and its pool of people who are engaged, has been a great thing for us as a brand to collaborate and work with."
Ordo's first license was Squishmallows. Founder Barty Walsh cold-pitched toy brand Jazwares on LinkedIn. Many doors stayed closed in the early days, Harnett said. That one opened. The Squishmallow toothbrush – a brush topped with a plush figure – announced Ordo had arrived in the U.S.
"We know from the research that a key component of breaking through those brushing battles is the kids having a brush that they want to use," Harnett said.
The brand started with a skinny sales tower in CVS stores for holiday 2024 to prove demand. It worked. By March 2025, CVS upgraded the displays. By September 2025, CVS carried the products on the normal shelf. That sell-through case study opened doors at Target and Walgreens.
In the 12 weeks ending in June, Squishmallow brushes drove $1.6 million in sales, a 28% increase from the prior 12 weeks.
Ordo could now prove to other companies it could handle a big account and build sales, Harnett said. That proof, plus persistence, landed a license with Universal for a Wicked product line, which launched in September 2025.
The Wicked license unlocked an older audience of tweens and even adults, Harnett said. Many children's toothbrushes exist, and plenty of children's licenses are available. Fewer cater to tweens.
"The licensed partners that we pick are considered to make sure that we're engaging kids of a variety of ages, and we're always mindful that interests evolve with age and with time," she said.
Wicked brush sales were strong, especially because the launch coincided with the movie release.
"You can take something that they love like Wicked and you can put it into a toothbrush and everyone's like, 'This is genius. This is amazing. This is the best thing I've seen,'" Harnett said. "The fans went crazy for it. It sold out within 48 hours on our website, our Wicked Sonic Light Range."
The Wicked success led to Ordo's most recent license, again with Universal, this time for Minions. The product launched in June. In the first two weeks, shoppers bought 7,000 units of the Minions brushes at Target, she said.
Minions has brand awareness with children, including older children, Harnett said. The toothbrush launch came a month ahead of the movie premiere in July, letting the brush ride the hype.
"When we considered our product portfolio, it's making sure that we continue on that journey of engaging more kids into these better habits," Harnett said. "Squishmallows has been brilliant, to really tap into all kids and make it more accessible to more kids, adding more characters into the range is going to be a component of that."
Ordo's strategy is working. Children's products make up 85% of U.S. sales, compared with 50-60% in the U.K. The brand is fine with that split. It is establishing itself in the U.S. through kids, with the goal of parents buying adult products later.
Recently, Ordo changed its U.S. social media accounts to focus exclusively on children's products. Instead of mixing adult and kids content, the marketing team decided to grow a community of parents in one lane, Harnett said.
"The whole tone of voice with kids is one of non-judgment," she said. "We hear you, we see you parents. We know that you're finding this difficult, and here's a great dentist-approved solution for you."
The brand also works with influencers on children's oral care tips and has charity partnerships, including America's ToothFairy, to provide resources to underprivileged children.
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