A toehold in Europe leads to a global footprint

By offering modern treatment options along with the systems necessary to deliver them effectively and efficiently, Myofunctional Research Co. (MRC) has grown to become established internationally as a frontrunner in a 21st-century niche of the market. While the head office is based in Australia, the company’s earliest inroads were in Europe, and while MRC is becoming well-known as dental innovators domestically, since 1995 when distribution started, MRC Europe has grown a significant business footprint from its base in Holland.

MRC Founder Dr. Chris Farrell said the company’s European origins grew from the acceptance of an idea. “Twenty-five years ago, we were less globally connected,” he said. “At that time, Australian dentists and orthodontists could not see the importance or potential of our Trainer and Myobrace systems, whereas the European orthodontists were able to.”

MRC Europe’s first distribution contract was signed more than 20 years ago for France, where the distributor sold exclusively to orthodontists. Farrell said these orthodontists quickly recognized the potential for MRC’s treatment systems and continue to be enthusiastic about what MRC offers today.

“They were more educated in certain areas and understood about function and early treatment, so they immediately took our pre-trainer on board,” he said. “France remains one of our best markets, and when I lecture there these days, they want to learn everything they can about new appliances as well as how we have developed the integrated Myofunctional Activity System and practice management systems to optimize efficiency and patient compliance.

“Our Myofunctional Activity production, which includes an educational series focused on nutrition and diet is now available in French.”

While it was the French willingness to accept an idea that helped MRC establish a toehold in Europe, a regular presence at the International Dental Show (IDS) in Cologne increased awareness and the fading of a 20th century superpower opened access to new European markets.

“We have had a presence at every IDS since 1997 and now have distributors in every European country,” Farrell said. “When the former Soviet Union changed, we found that orthodontists in Eastern European countries were already learning about mouth breathing and poor myofunctional habits causing malocclusion, so when MRC came along with a better way to treat, the acceptance was quite high.”

Nowadays, the European headquarters naturally includes the standard corporate sales and distribution departments, but Farrell said continuing to educate European dental professionals regarding myofunctional dysfunction and modern pre-orthodontic preventive treatment was an integral part of MRC Europe’s operation.

“The European HQ includes a substantial training center with a fully equipped training clinic to show European dental professionals and their staff how to deliver cost-effective pediatric pre-orthodontic care for millions of growing children all over Europe,” he said. “Nowadays, we have training sessions almost every week for doctors from all over Europe, and Holland is an excellent hub for this.”

The acceptance MRC received in Europe was not always the norm, though, and spreading beyond European borders, particularly into the United States, provided a fair share of challenges.

Farrell said establishing MRC in the United States caused more of a struggle, as it required a change in thinking for those U.S. dental professionals.

“Linking malocclusion to myofunctional disorder, which can be more difficult to see was a different way of thinking,” he said. “We simplified our education and training process to return to basics and show how you must treat the dysfunction first, then the teeth.

“The Myobrace System is more about health, growth and development in younger children rather than a novel way to straighten teeth. To begin with, braces-oriented orthodontists had trouble believing that the system can straighten teeth while only being used for one hour per day and at night. Once they realized, they were amazed at the results, and so during the last two years, all our USA courses have been at capacity and sales of Myobrace were up 51 percent for North America in 2015.”

Farrell said that when it came to recognizing the potential of MRC’s treatment systems, European dental professionals initially had a slight advantage but their American counterparts had caught on.

“Europeans have always used functional appliances so there was already basic foundation of knowledge to build on,” he said. “Establishing MRC in America took longer than in Europe because the basics of our system were not taught in North American universities. Now there are several taking on MRC post-grad courses so pediatric and orthodontic specialists can work together to resolve health and orthodontic issues in growing children.”

With awareness and acceptance established internationally, in 2015, MRC brought focus back to the Australian market. Farrell said that, just like in Europe and the U.S., education was a central part of MRC’s operation in Australia.

“2015 was a watershed year for MRC in Australia,” he said. “In November 2014, we opened our new training facility at our Queensland office. The first delegates to come for training were orthodontists and their staff from China, but I am pleased all our Australian courses have also been well-accepted by local dentists. All the Australian courses have been at capacity with special courses being put on for dentists and orthodontists from Japan, Taiwan, Korea and Singapore.”

Farrell said MRC’s success demonstrated how a willingness to be innovative and recognize opportunity as well as persistence and dedication could enable 21st-century dental professionals to adapt to a changing profession.

“We have to understand that a niche market has a global reach, and you no longer need a lot of products to be successful,” he said. “One thing I’m certain of is that education is the key to a healthier and more prosperous future. It took us 20 years to figure out: It was all about education and get that message out globally.”

(Source: Myofunctional Research Co.)