Perhaps this is what the maturation of the beauty industry looks like: when even the most utilitarian categories are given the right to individuality and pleasure.
Open Beauty Hub community: a space where we analyze such shifts not as curiosities, but as signals of the future of the beauty market.
Until recently, oral care was the domain of strict conservatism. Mint. Eucalyptus at most. Identical tubes, identical promises of “freshness.” No emotion, no choice, no character. In 2025–2026, this logic begins to break down. Oral care is quietly moving into the lifestyle and even luxury space, and toothpaste is becoming an object of taste, design, and cultural expression.
This paradigm shift is clearly visible in how brands are beginning to work not only with function but also with sensations: taste, aroma, texture, visual code, packaging, associations. Brushing your teeth is no longer a mechanical chore but a small ritual that you want to experience mindfully.
Toothpastes with notes of spices, herbs, desserts, tea, citrus, smoky, and spicy accords are appearing on the market. Textures are also changing: creamier, silkier, sometimes denser, almost “oily.” Even mass-market products are catching up—watermelon, strawberry, rose, exotic fruits. Taste is becoming a language of communication.
But it’s especially interesting how this trend is developing in the premium segment. One of the most illustrative examples is Selahatin. This Swedish brand, with production in Switzerland, has made taste not an addition, but its main selling point. The formulas are based on hydroxyapatite to strengthen enamel, but the marketing focus is shifted toward the sensory experience.
Each Selahatin toothpaste has a poetic name and an aromatic composition that is more akin to a perfume description than a pharmacy product. The texture is dense and creamy, without the feeling of “chemical foam.” It’s not about sterile freshness, but about mood.
The aesthetic culmination was the collaboration with Rick Owens. The flavor profile is vanilla, rosemary, juniper, Sichuan and black pepper, with a soft peppery note. It’s often described as a reference to gin and tobacco smoke—not literally, but atmospherically, which explains it. Warm, dry, slightly spicy, without the usual “medical clean” feeling.
The brand’s line also includes a handmade horn toothbrush with natural bristles—a logical continuation of the idea of tactility and craftsmanship. The price of toothpaste is around 38-40 euros for a 65 ml tube. And here, it’s not the number that matters, but the message: hygiene is no longer a boring category and is entering the realm of aesthetics, sensory experience, and status.
The first cosmetic product you use on New Year’s Day is almost certainly toothpaste. Ninety-nine percent chance. And this is where one of the most quiet yet significant shifts in the beauty industry is taking place today.
This has happened before with skincare, liquid hand soap, and home fragrances. Now it’s oral care’s turn. For consumers, this means choice. They can continue to use basic toothpaste from the supermarket. Or they can treat their morning and evening rituals as personal pleasures, where taste, feel, design, and emotional impact are all important.