Wet shaving talk

WOW, that was bleak dark and gloomy wasn't it? LOL. With the holidays around the corner, I wanna hear you be a little more cheerful lol. Oh wait, are the inlaws coming over this thanksgiving? Well then I understand you feeling down about that LOL! If the turkey ends up flying out the window, it wasn't me, points at the inlaw holding a fork in each hand. HAHA 

Yeah I hear ya, traditional wet shaving is not a huge industry, so in the grand scheme of things, we probably don't matter as much as say the, Gillette cartridge razor crowd. Having said that however, one can't deny just how much sexier our safety razors are, over those half plastic cartridge monstrosities. Of course, everybody should use what they like, but I like to fly that Blackbird Osprey. Blackbird taking off, airspeeds alive, positive rate, Osprey heavy coming through! 

WOW, that was bleak dark and gloomy wasn't it? LOL. With the holidays around the corner, I wanna hear you be a little more cheerful lol. Oh wait, are the inlaws coming over this thanksgiving? Well then I understand you feeling down about that LOL! If the turkey ends up flying out the window, it wasn't me, points at the inlaw holding a fork in each hand. HAHA 

Yeah I hear ya, traditional wet shaving is not a huge industry, so in the grand scheme of things, we probably don't matter as much as say the, Gillette cartridge razor crowd. Having said that however, one can't deny just how much sexier our safety razors are, over those half plastic cartridge monstrosities. Of course, everybody should use what they like, but I like to fly that Blackbird Osprey. Blackbird taking off, airspeeds alive, positive rate, Osprey heavy coming through! 

Good point.

Well, to be a bit more positive, I think we are seeing a lot of new manufacturers entering the industry producing really exceptional products, as well as great new products from more established brands. In the last couple of years we had Lambda, Bluttrasur and Atelier Durdan start up - each as good as anything we’ve seen before - and a slew of other new entrants in all price ramges. We have new products like the Karve Overlander, the Rocnel Hybrid at half the price of the eminent Sailor, the Wolfman WR4, etc. We even have high end GEM razors from Wolfman and Atelier Durdan - who’d have predicted that? - and adjustable slant razors from the evil Rex and Homelike Shaving companies. We have the Wald A1 synthetic brush, which is completely different. There are many more highlights than I could possibly list. There is no shortage of quality or activity in the artisan wet shaving world, and no shortage of buyers. Our corner of shavedom is thriving. It hurts that we lost H L Thäter and Vie-Long brushes this year - both favourites of mine - but overall we are gaining far more.

(...)On the other hand, the premium products segment is experiencing growth due to a shift in consumer preference towards high-quality and luxury grooming items. The perception of premium products as a status symbol, along with the increase in brand consciousness and consumer willingness to invest in self-care, has propelled this segment. Manufacturers capitalizing on this trend with targeted marketing strategies and offering unique, high-end products have further accelerated its growth.(...)

https://www.imarcgroup.com/male-grooming...cts-market

Definitely not growing based on available content. Many closed up shop these past few years coinciding with the weaker economy.

Just so much stock. You hit a saturation point. Also after Covid, buying used cosmetics looked different.

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My friends are hesitant to try using a razor because they’re worried about getting injured. Plus, they feel that electric shavers can get the job done quickly, even if the experience and efficiency aren’t that great. Since there’s not much to talk about in terms of content or tricks, people don’t want to keep saying the same thing over and over. This might be one reason it’s hard to consistently produce high-quality videos, which in turn leads to fewer subscribers. Brands aren’t eager to get involved because the market is too small. Yet, we’re still seeing similar designs in modern razors.

I have been following this thread with interest, but have been hesitant to participate as I believe that my fundamental philosophy of wet shaving is likely to be offensive to the wet shaving hobbyist, or at least not affirming. I also apologize for the length of this rant. I think that if done correctly with the right kind of products (which we already have), and the right kind of trade channels (which we might have through Amazon), wet shaving is not only growing, but can explode and liberate the masses from the slavery of the cartridge shaving /canned goo world, the condescension of Gillette, et al., and the misery of electric shaving. Let me explain.

We recently had a thread about the Poor Man's Luxury shave where many of you put together fantastic quality sub $50.00 shave kits (razor, boar brush, soap, blades, etc.) that would last a wet shaver a lifetime and reduce annual costs to less than $15.00 with quality and enjoyable products We then had a thread about "technique trumps tools" where we put together a list of ten (OK, just nine) tips which would lead a new wet shaver to great results since Dad isn't there in the bathroom to teach him.

I think that we are on the cusp of this great revolution. The avarice of Gillette et al. and contempt that they have for their customers knows no bounds. They keep making more and more expensive single pass cartridges that do more and more skin damage. People are getting fed up. The Art of Shaving kind of tapped into this but frankly at the wrong price point. I see why they had to follow that model what with the price of mall store rents being what they are, but they did pick up on the zeitgeist of the wet shave movement. At the other end of the spectrum, the Dollar Shave Club is anything but one dollar, and considering what you get is just as much of a rip off. If somehow we could get quality, inexpensive wet shave products back into CVS and Wallgreen's, with some sort of educational component, this movement would explode. As far as electrics go, over many decades of shaving I have used every type generally available, and to this day when I have to use an electric, i just feel..........defeated.

It's just too bad that Williams, Surrey (now VDH) and Old Spice shave soaps, Eveready C40 brushes and Shick injector razors are things of the past. The fact that there are still some high quality mass market shave products that have been in existence for over 50, 60 or 100 years is evidence that there is still a market for wet shaving products Keep in mind, our grandfathers, or maybe great grandfathers, were perfectly happy with one razor, one brush and one soap for their entire lives. This is a model that wouldn't work for most people here, but it would work for most men all around the world.

To me, this is sort of a Great Commission to free our brethren from the mesmerism of Gillette super bowl advertising. While I think that there is absolutely nothing wrong with buying a $400.00 Theirs Issard straight razor or paying $30.00 for the latest C6 base artisan shave soap, it does not from my perspective, do anything that my $12.00 Gold Dollar 208 and a tub of Cella can't do. Moreover, from a macro perspective it isn't going to free the masses. It is just going to take someone to put it all together, provide the information necessary to use the products, and then get it into mass market channels of trade to make it all happen.

I apologize if I stepped on anybody's toes but this is my best answer to the OP's query.

Great post.

Great post.

I can pretty much guarantee you that not many will approve of it.

Well, I knew that my post was not going to be popular, but in the spirit of keeping this thread going I will share some further thoughts:

What I will call "classic" wet shaving (DE or SE injector razor), soap in a mug and drug store aftershave died in the early 70's with Gillette's introduction of the Evil Trac II razor using the Lift-n-Cut (a/k/a the "ingrown hair") system promising a quick, close single pass shave. In some ways I can see how it superseded the old DE razor. There were still uncoated Wilkinson Sword DE blades running around being used in old out of adjustment, bent and banged up TTO razors, and frankly they gave a really rough shave. The Trac II was a lot more comfortable and with the "lubrication strip" could do a clean up pass without having to re-lather. That made using canned goo an easy switch from a brush and a mug. Unfortunately, guys never associated the ingrown hairs, the five-o-clock shadow, the dry skin, etc. with that new way of shaving. Norelco, et al. also bamboozled men into thinking that they could get a good shave from an electric, and after having invested $100 (or worse, getting one as a gift) they were not about to admit that it really didn't work, and if they made it work they got razor burn. Then, it was decades of new fads, more blades, etc. to "fix" the problem. Finally, (some) guys realized that it was all B.S. and classic wet shaving had its revival. It took a good 30 years but that was/is the power of advertising and every few years coming up with the next "new thing".

So now, it seems to me that the question is: how do you convince the average Joe who believes what he is told, that the old fashioned way of shaving is better?

First, I note that the new blades are far superior to what was sold in the 50's and 60's. The coatings are much better and durable (e.g. sputtering) and the new breed of SE half DE blade razors are making shaving very affordable. Pearl had a good $20.00 SE half blade razor offering but had teething problems with quality control. When they come back with this product it could be a game changer. Decent half DE blades are about 5 cents each and last for half a dozen shaves, or more if your beard is light. The increasing use of this type of blade by barbers will keep the price down and availability high. Soaps are a mixed bag. We really need a decent $5/puck tallow soap that will last someone most of one year. We are in good shape for A/S with most of the old, cheap drug store brands having survived on Amazon.

All we need is the marketing genius to figure out how to bring these products to the masses in an integrated way and convince them that they are being ripped off!

I think that VDH tried this but somehow they lost their shelf space in the brick and mortar drug stores. I don't fully understand how that happened. Maybe some of you do?

Tedolph You seem to have a burr under your saddle on this topic. I'm not adverse to your thoughts on it compadre, I'm just not signing up to join the lynch mob with a rope for whoever all you want to round up. I'm content to enjoy my happy shaves out on the quiet prairie in simple pleasure and peace where the tumbleweed blows thru. Just an enjoyable hobby for me. But best wishes on your planned stampede of an uprising.

PS : Obviously this was posted as good natured ribbing. Don't expect a back and forth discussion on the topic from me