A fang-toothed grin, a recognizable superhero design or something more understated: SafeJawz gives a small part of your equipment a look of its own. Behind those striking mouthguards is a story that begins with two students in Manchester. George Dyer and Ewan Jones knew contact sports firsthand and saw room for a brand that brought fit and personality together.
Their business grew from selling sporting goods at student events into a specialist in mouth protection. Along the way came a workspace in a spare bedroom, technical support from the University of Warwick and an official Marvel collection. The guiding idea remained clear: a mouthguard should feel like a comfortable part of your sport, with a look you enjoy wearing.
Two housemates with a shared sporting background
SafeJawz was founded in 2014 by George Dyer and Ewan Jones. The two met as students and housemates in Manchester. George was involved in boxing and martial arts, while Ewan played rugby. They brought different perspectives on the same piece of equipment: a mouthguard was part of preparing for both the boxing gym and the rugby pitch.
That combination is an important detail in the story. SafeJawz grew out of the experience of contact sports athletes, not a single discipline. A boxer and a rugby player move differently, but both understand the importance of a protector that feels comfortable in the mouth. Talking about their own equipment became the starting point for a business together.
Their first business activities went beyond mouthguards. George and Ewan sold sportswear and other sporting goods at student events. That brought them close to the people using their products. It was this combination of playing sports themselves and selling directly that helped them find their own direction.
From market stall to spare bedroom
In George's account of the company's beginnings, the business starts in a very hands-on way. They sell teamwear and discounted sports equipment, hear directly from customers and learn as they go what athletes find comfortable. Interest in mouth protection grows out of those everyday conversations. A mouthguard offers room for both a better user experience and a distinctive look.
After university, the company continues from a spare bedroom in a terraced house in Manchester. To furnish it, the founders pick up second-hand office furniture from the Moss Side Community Project. A filing cabinet travels on a skateboard through Rusholme to the new workspace. It is the kind of small detail that immediately gives a business story a sense of place and scale.
At that point, there is no large sports company behind the brand. There are two founders, a practical workspace and a product idea that still needs development. Moving from selling various sports products to developing their own specialty requires different expertise: designing, choosing suitable materials and making a product ready for manufacturing.
Four moments that show the brand's development
The history becomes clearer when you look at the founding, the first workspace and the technical development together. Not every change needs its own launch date. These four moments trace the main path of the brand's growth, from the founders' student days to its later recognition as a sports brand.
- 2014: George Dyer and Ewan Jones start SafeJawz. The Manchester housemates combine their backgrounds in boxing, martial arts and rugby with their experience selling sports equipment.
- After university: a bedroom becomes a workspace. From a terraced house in Manchester, the founders continue building their business with second-hand office furniture and a clear focus on mouthguards.
- 2017: WMG describes the journey from sketch to prototype. On October 27, the University of Warwick publishes an article about its help with 3D models, adult and junior prototypes, and preparations for manufacturing.
- 2024: a King's Award for Enterprise. SafeJawz lists the award as a milestone in the company's continued development.
Warwick helps make the idea ready for production
An appealing idea on paper is the start of product development. To turn it into a usable mouthguard, the shape, material and manufacturing method have to work together. SafeJawz sought support for this from WMG, part of the University of Warwick. The university's 2017 report offers a concrete look at that work.
Technology Transfer Engineer Jennie Murray describes how the team turned sketches into 3D models. Using specialist equipment, they then made prototypes for adults and juniors from those models. This allowed the shape to be assessed and refined before the product was made on a larger scale.
The preparations for manufacturing also received attention. WMG helped optimize the design and put the company in touch with manufacturers and toolmakers. That connects the creative side of the brand with the industrial side: a striking idea also has to be manufactured accurately and consistently.
For the brand's history, that is a meaningful step. The founders brought sports experience and their own vision; the collaboration added specialist design and manufacturing expertise. The development support shows how much work can go into the shape of a seemingly simple piece of sports equipment.
Protection with Personality takes shape
Protection with Personality sums up the familiar SafeJawz idea. Protection is the product’s function; personality gives it a place of its own among your training gear. That can be bold, with a grin or teeth as the design, but it can also be understated and simple. It’s about having the freedom to choose a design that suits you.
With much of your gear, that personal choice comes naturally. You pick a color for your gloves or shorts you like wearing. SafeJawz brings the same idea to the mouthguard. A small piece of equipment that usually gets little attention suddenly becomes a distinctive detail of the athlete who wears it.
The familiar Dracula design makes that idea immediately clear. The teeth on the front are part of its look, while the shape of the mouthguard serves its own practical purpose. The combination of a distinctive look and a thoughtfully designed fit gives the brand its character.
Fit is the technical theme throughout
Beyond its appearance, how it fits your teeth plays a central role. SafeJawz uses the names FluidFit, JawSecure and ReModel Tech for its self-fit mouthguards. They describe different parts of the user experience: shaping the material, designing the base and being able to refit it according to the model instructions.
FluidFit is about the material that is shaped to the contours of your teeth during fitting. So the shape you wear during training is created with your input. The instructions for your chosen model determine how to prepare it. That makes fitting an essential part of the product.
JawSecure refers to the underside of the mouthguard, where the lower teeth make contact. A mouthguard therefore has more design details than just its visible front. The base and contact surfaces also deserve attention when you want to understand how it fits in the mouth.
ReModel Tech lets you repeat the fitting process according to the included instructions. Together, these features put the original ambition into practice: to develop a mouthguard you choose not just for its looks, but also because it is comfortable to fit and use.
One idea, different designs
The Intro and Extro ranges show how one specialty can take different forms. Intro is an accessible starting point for the brand’s self-fit mouthguards. Extro puts more emphasis on distinctive designs. Names like Dracula, Shark and Viper give the range its own identity.
That makes it an interesting example of how the brand has developed, without having to list every model separately. The founders started with the idea that dental protection deserved more attention. In the later ranges, that idea takes shape around different preferences: simple, bold, or suited to a particular use.
Fixed braces create just such a distinct situation. They require different space in the mouth than a standard moldable mouthguard. With Ortho, that need has its own place within the brand. It is an example of expanding within the same field, rather than moving ever further from the original specialization.
Ortho: the design starts with the athlete who wears braces
Fixed braces change the space in which a mouthguard is worn. Brackets and the position of the lips both factor into the design. SafeJawz Ortho was developed with that situation in mind. The line retains the focus on fit but gives it a targeted technical approach.
BraceHarbour creates space for upper braces. The adapted FluidFit layer helps mold the mouthguard. On the underside, the LowerBlock shield forms a barrier between the lower braces and the inside of the lip. These specific design choices explain why a mouthguard for braces has its own construction.
Here, too, personality remains part of the brand. Alongside a simple version, there is, for example, an Ortho Dracula. Technical requirements and visual appeal do not have to be at odds. An athlete with braces gets a purpose-built version, with room for the same recognizable style.
To mold it, follow the instructions for the relevant Ortho model. What stands out in the brand story is the direction of development: SafeJawz builds on its expertise by starting with a specific athlete and how they use the product.
Marvel fits the moment before the start
With Marvel x SafeJawz, Protection with Personality takes on a new, instantly recognizable form. Spider-Man, Black Panther, Captain America and other characters connect sports gear with a world many athletes already know. It is an official Marvel collection, with familiar imagery incorporated into the designs.
SafeJawz links the collection to a memorable sporting moment: just before you start, you put in your mouthguard. The preparation is done, and your attention turns to what comes next on the field, in the ring or during training. The brand compares it to a hero putting on their gear before going into action.
That idea fits the company's origins. The founders wanted to make something seen as mandatory more appealing to wear. A favorite character offers a different way in. The product gains meaning from the athlete who chooses it, not just from its shape on the workbench.
The collaboration also shows how design and brand identity can reinforce each other. The striking front continues to draw attention, while the fit shapes the everyday experience of wearing it. In this way, Marvel extends the brand concept already present in earlier designs.
Confidence as part of the brand language
Confidence comes up regularly in the way SafeJawz talks about sport. The idea is familiar: you prepare, choose your gear and step into training focused on what you are about to do. A comfortable, well-fitting mouthguard and a design you enjoy wearing are part of that preparation.
This also gives the product an emotional side. A mouthguard is gear you experience up close. It goes in your mouth, becomes part of a regular routine and belongs to the moment when training begins in earnest. A distinctive look can make this everyday piece of gear feel more personal.
The founders’ sporting backgrounds fit that approach. Boxing and rugby are different worlds, but in both, the shift from preparing to participating matters. SafeJawz draws on that shared experience to tell its story: the product is close to the athlete, literally and figuratively.
Growth within a clear specialization
Looking at the brand’s history, what stands out most is its growing focus. An initial interest in better dental protection led to different versions and designs, along with a dedicated range for people with braces. The collaboration with Warwick gives the production side a concrete form; the Marvel collection shows how far the focus on personality can go.
The 2024 King's Award for Enterprise has its own place in that development. The award appears among the company’s milestones on the official brand page. For a business that started at student events and in a spare bedroom, it marks a striking step in the story.
Accessories also fit that specialization. A protective case gives the mouthguard a dedicated place on the way to training. It is a practical addition for the same small product, without the brand’s story needing to expand into a complete range of combat sports gear.
From a shared idea to a recognizable sports brand
SafeJawz began with two housemates who took their own experience in contact sports seriously. Selling sports equipment brought them close to customers, working from Manchester gave the company a practical base, and collaborating with Warwick helped bring design ideas closer to production.
The brand’s later development stays true to those beginnings. Fit, a distinctive look, dedicated models for braces and the official Marvel collection are different expressions of the same idea. A mouthguard gets the attention it deserves as a real part of your gear, with both a technical and a personal side.
That is where SafeJawz gets its character. Behind the striking grin is more than a playful design: it is the story of a small piece of sports equipment that offered more possibilities than it first appeared to. Protection with Personality is the short version of that story.
