Hasta La Ideas

Simon Enever is the head designer of New York based agency ECCO Design and the founder of byDEFAULT. Formerly a designer at fuseproject, Enever has focused on bringing iconic design to overlooked everyday products. byDEFAULT’s first product, TOOTHBRUSH, is a truly customizable modular toothbrush that’s as unique as the person who’s using it. But the main focus of this daily essential was to choose simplicity over complicated features we may see with other toothbrushes. Enever takes some time to step us through the design process.

After taking my first trip to a dentist after moving to the U.S. from London, I was told that I was damaging my gums by brushing too hard. Among various other tips, I was recommended to try out a simple vibrating brush. On the way home, I popped into the pharmacy to pick up a brush—somewhat excited about this new, slightly “techy” sounding product I was about to pick up. I was presented with this familiar sight:

Sifting through shelf after shelf, it didn’t matter if I was looking at manual, vibrating or full electric models, store brands or high-end brands; everything had that same gaudy look and cheap feel. Each brush was packed with gimmicky features and slogans in an attempt to lure me in. I gave up in the store and decided to look online. I had the exact same experience.

“Surely someone out there must have put some effort toward creating a well-designed, intelligent brush,” I thought. Despite a few nice attempts in the eco-friendly manual brush market, I couldn’t find a version that was reasonably priced (read: not $280 like some I came across) without the showy tendencies.

As a designer, these are the moments you wait for. I immediately got in touch with—what was to later become—the byDEFAULT team.

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