Shaving Cream/Soap Samples – Lessons Learned, A Ton of Empty Jars and Process Results

Freddy   Canarsie.  It doesn't get any more Italian than Canarsie.  Rode that L train for a few years :-)

I lived in Sheepshead Bay and there were a few barbers around.  Though my neighborhood was a mixture of Jewish, Italian, Irish, and others, the barbers were always Italian.

I grew up in Bay Ridge.....near Fort Hamilton.  My Italian barber is still there....he's 83 years old.  EVERY haircut was (and still is) finished with warm shaving cream on the neck and sideburns, straight razor, cold water rinse, towel dry, talcum powder and finally a Pinaud or Floid splash.

I'm taking a guess grim, but I bet you are younger than 50 years old my friend.


BTW one of my fondest memories was my grandfather taking me to the fishing docks in Sheepshead Bay as a kid.  We'd throw the biggest rocks we could find over the side of the dock until the water splashed us in the face.  That was about 50 years ago.  Probably toxic sludge now.

I'm taking a guess grim, but I bet you are younger than 50 years old my friend.
 

http://damnfineshave.com/thread-shaving-...6#pid60446

"I should say I’m a baby boomer" I don't know of any baby boomers younger than 50

My memory of barbershops were very straightforward. Two, possibly three chairs. Usually one barber. Pole outside. Linoleum floor. Chain smoking patrons. Stacks of Look Magazine and Archie Comics, maybe Boys Life. Barbacide, Brylcream and yes the whisk. But the prevalent scent was not talcum powder, but the combination of all the elements. This was a time when everyone smoked. Even cigars where smoked in barbershops. No one cared. And the newspaper was always present.


This was like it except this place looked sorta modern. Note the kid gets the magazines. Check out the Jeris talc at 4:24. Sure sounds like the shaving mug was ancient history because of that modern lather machine.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=32WXKzwdNTw

[quote='Batman' pid='63766' dateline='1464997019']
I'm taking a guess grim, but I bet you are younger than 50 years old my friend.
 

http://damnfineshave.com/thread-shaving-...6#pid60446

"I should say I’m a baby boomer" I don't know of any baby boomers younger than 50

my apologies grim......I totally glossed over the baby boomer statement! Great video...brought back a lot of memories.

... Barbacide, Brylcream and yes the whisk. But the prevalent scent was not talcum powder, but the combination of all the elements. This was a time when everyone smoked. Even cigars where smoked in barbershops. No one cared. And the newspaper was always present.

I can see why "Barbershop" scent isn't that appealing to you. Since tobacco smoke was ubiquitous, I never really noticed it, it was the other smells in the barbershop that caught my attention.

Feedback for soap makers

Soap makers seem to always be looking for feedback so here is my opinion. I am not qualified to discuss this other than from observation purely as a consumer. I know nothing about the chemistry, marketing, business plans, etc. I don’t know anything about this industry other than someone who consumes the products so this is just my opinion – in good faith, from the consumer.

It seems the long time, established and apparently successful soap makers, the ones that have been around for many decades, some more than a century, have one, maybe two truly great and timeless scents. There is a reason they are still in business after 100 or 150  years. They have a brand and if you said their name to hobbyists,  even if the hobbyist has never used the product, they probably know who makes it simply because the product is discussed in the virtual community.

Some examples? I suspect just about anyone who considers traditional wet shaving a hobby instantly – immediately – recognizes the following scents/soaps as classics (or close to classics/well known) and can say the name of the company who makes them - EVEN IF THEY NEVER BOUGHT THEM.

Say the soap name and tell me who makes it! I’m sure you can think of some more.  

Irish Tweed
Blenheim Bouquet
1805
Eucris
Tabac
Kabinett and now
Nuavia

Each of these is instantly recognizable to the hobbyist and sooner or later consumers stumble upon them, at least in virtual space. But I am hard pressed to think of more than two or three  “new” artisans that have signature scents, scents that the majority of wet shavers instantly recognize perhaps LPV and XXX? Maybe I don't know them.

We live in a society that wants instant gratification, news is consumed in 140 bytes of data, and the news cycle is 24 hours long and then old news. My opinion is to stop chasing “seasonal” scents and focus on a “great” and branded scent. Nobody remember last Fall’s seasonal scent today. It's old news.

Create a scent, in a superlative formulation, that will withstand the ravages of time. Say the name, and you know exactly the brand.  The name becomes synonymous with the brand. This is, of course, branding. And what can be more important than branding?

I assume this is a difficult thing to do. If it were easy, everyone would be doing it.  And soap names? What do the classics all have in common? Even classics like “Old Spice” or simply “Mitchell’s Wool Fat”? They are branded with something you are going to remember. Just my opinion ...

Only recognized tabac from your list.

Think stuff like tobs, cella, MDC are more universally recognized

grim, I can tell you who makes Blenheim Bouquet (Penhaligon's) and who makes Eucris (Geo. F. Trumper).  While I have Tabac, I haven't a clue who makes it.  As for the others on your list, they are either heard of but never seen or used or never heard of at all.  That may be one reason for our artisans doing what they do with seasonals, formula changes, logo changes, etc.  Even established companys like Taylor of Old Bond Street, for one, are constantly tweaking their products.  I doubt that grapefruit was one of TOBSs scents when they started out 100+ years ago but it is one of my favorite scents of theirs today.

Folks like Will of Barrister_N_Mann do keep some scents that have become associated with them (and, Will, if you ever get rid of Cheshire, you're dead meat ).  However, if a scent that was once popular stops selling in sufficient quantity then what choice is there than to stop producing it or just bringing it back from time to time as something special.

Having said all of that, I do understand where you are coming from and don't entirely disagree.  Your example of Penhaligon's Blenheim Bouquet is an absolute staple in my EdT collection.  I use it often and would really be upset if it was no longer produced or if the formula was changed so that it became something else.

Only recognized tabac from your list.

Think stuff like tobs, cella, MDC are more universally recognized

Those were examples of soaps.

Cella Crema da Barba All'Olio Di Mandorla and its sibling Cella, Crema Sapone Extra Extra Purissima, Cella for short, is allegely made by Niki Chini S.R.L. It is a very poor example of what I was getting at as I'll guess very, very few people might know that, or care. If Niki Chini is doing branding, I might guess they sort of did not succeed if they are trying to get their company name out. This is not what I'm talking about.

OTH, Tabac, made by Maurer & Wirtz, has existed since 1959 as a shave soap, within a company that was founded in 1845.  It's a large company producing several products with hundreds of employees http://www.m-w.de

TOBS and Martin de Candre are Brands, they are not soaps. I didn't choose either because I don't believe the signature brands are really all that well known as names, per se. TOBS Sandalwood, at least according to Amazon, is probably the best selling soap/cream on Amazon. But the name is Sandalwood. That would be meaningless as many soap makers make a Sandalwood, like GFT, AOS, etc.  If I had used as examples Eton College, Jerymn Street of Mr. Taylor, perhaps you might have recognized it or not. Similarly if I said Lavender or Fougere, you could never guess MdC because lots of companies make soaps called Lavender or Fougere.

In any case both TOBS and MdC are soap makers, not names of scents (although I'm not sure if TOBS outsources its production). Perhaps I didn't get that point across very well and I'm sorry if you missed that.

Freddy sure, if something doesn't sell it gets dropped. Business 101, and no doubt new scents are created. I'm talking up front. Instead of focusing on scent #15 after existing as a company for 5 years, maybe create a signature scent.

Brands don't just become well-known brands over night. It takes time to develop brand recognition and a devoted following. At the start, the way forward is always uncertain and the path is never clear. Take L'Occitane en Provence, for example. Back in the mid-70's that was some kid steaming essential oils out of lavender and rosemary and selling it at the French equivalent of a farmers' market. Celestial Seasonings tea started in the 60's with some hippies roaming around in the mountains above Boulder, Co. looking for herbs. It took years, lots of hard work, perseverance and trial and error before they became successful brands that could compete against the major players in the market. A, well-known brand is the goal of the game, not the starting point.

Currently, we all have the opportunity to witness the reintroduction of new products into what was once a huge market, dominated by some of the most powerful companies in the history of mankind . A market now as abandoned as the buggy whip market. What we now call "Artisans", are generally newcomers, whose feet have not been the path toward success for very long,. Others have found some notoriety and some are well on their way toward establishing brands that may endure. Lastly, there are the few old-timers who have managed, somehow, to hang on in an industry that moved on without them, into a brave new world of plastic and foam.

Personally, I wish them all well and hope they have huge success. Those that offer the best products, at the best prices, follow fair business practices, make wise choices and work hard will prosper -- assuming the government keeps its nose out of it.

Brands don't just become well-known brands over night.

No, they don't. As a consumer, this was my suggestion. Get a signature scent out their that people will recognize.

Coca Cola is known world wide for coca cola. This is their signature product. But they also make Fanta, Dasani water, minute maid, Fresca, Simply Orange, Sprite, and a few others. But their signature is Coca Cola. I know they make Sprite and Fresca but didn't realize they make Dasani or Simply Orange.

If Niki Chini S.R.L. wanted to get a brand out their, they would need to have Cella Crema da Barba All'Olio Di Mandorla or Cella, Crema Sapone Extra Extra Purissima associated with it. I don't see that happening. If you say Cella, how many people will say "oh yeah, Niki Chini"?

Say 1805 and I am still convinced a great many hobbyists will know that is T&H. Klar Kabinett seems to be the gold standard for Rose with others trying to emulate it.

Branding ... that's my suggestion.