ALGN vs BJ Comparison

Align Technology is the leading manufacturer of clear aligners. Invisalign, its main product, was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 1998 and has since dominated, controlling over 90% of the market. Invisalign can treat roughly 90% of all malocclusion cases (misaligned teeth), and there are over 230,000 Invisalign-trained dentists and orthodontists. In 2022, Invisalign treated over 2 million cases, or roughly 10% of all orthodontic cases for the year, and it has treated over 14 million patients since its launch. Align also sells intraoral scanners under the brand iTero, which captures digital impressions of patients' teeth and illustrates treatment plans. Over 85% of Invisalign cases are submitted by digital scans, and iTero scans make up over half of these scans.

BJ's Wholesale serves as one of the few warehouse club chains in the United States. Its 250 warehouses are primarily located along the East Coast, most prominently in the New England area. Similar to its warehouse club peers, BJ's charges annual membership fees and keeps costs down by operating a "no-frills" store environment. The company limits the use of distribution centers where possible and stores inventory on pallets directly on the sales floor, often in bulk quantities. The company also offers a limited assortment of 7,000 stock-keeping units at its warehouses to achieve greater procurement scale on select items. About 80% of BJ's net sales come from grocery items and general merchandise, with the remaining 20% stemming from gasoline and other ancillary services.