Singapore Shaving Stops

[rhinoyahoo]

A bit of a shot in the dark, but B&B seems more and more international...

Work has me in Singapore and I'm wondering if there are any special shaving stops or shopping that I should do, while there.

TIA,
Jim

 

[rhinoyahoo]

For the record, I'm not finding much, here. The "corner drug stores" are Watson's and Guardian. They have no DE blades, let alone, razors...and many cans of "goo"

I checked several department stores, along Orchard Road and the best I could find is Lab Series.

I did fine the Japanese store (Daiso) with the DORCO DE blades and plastic DE razor. With Feathers, back at the hotel, I took a pass on DORCOs...although they got a pretty good (not bad) review, here.

Reporting from Singapore,
Jim

 

[dridiot]

Hi Jim,

You might be able to get some " Gillette Nacet " DE Blades which is made in Malaysia. Not a very good DE blade, pretty rough.....

Good deals on C&E products.

Takashimaya ( in Orchard Road ) does sell some MP brush sets at some crazy prices. Trust me, you wont want to go there

You will get good deals on Gillettes Mach 3 at Watsons and Guardian stores, if thats your thing.....

Some Malay barbers does give a shave with a shaevette ( Indian Blades), not many though...

No Simpsons, Plissons .... No nothing...
Good Luck...


Regards,
Jason

 

[genie47]

Hey Jim,

Sorry for the late reply. I'm from Singapore and I know the perfect place for shaving supplies here that is cheap.

It is found in Mustafa Centre in Little India. Tell the cab drivers, they know where it is.

Let's see......Nivea shave cream, Tabac, Old Spice.

You would love the prices!

Omega shave cream at SGD4.50 for a whole tube. Nivea is priced at SGD3.80 and the usual suspects from Gillette and Palmolive dominate the shelves selling for less. There is shave cream that hails from India by the name of Goorej even lesser.

There are many blades to choose from. Gillette 7 O'Clock, Astra blades from the Czech Republic (otherwise Czech Gillette since Gillette bought them in 1996). Brands you never heard of like Shogun.

Anyone coming down to this "fine" city just head on down there.

 

[TightLines]

hey genie is there a full service barber shop at Raffle's ?

 

[genie47]

I don't know. I tend to avoid the touristy places.

 

[genie47]

OK for all those interested in what you can get from Mustafa Center in Singapore but first about the place.

It is situated in Little India (Serangoon Road). It is a household name of sorts. A landmark in the area. Expatriate workers of Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi origin frequent this area.

What the place sells is a smorgasbord of stuff. Most of it servicing the Indian community.

The website is here: http://www.mustafa.com.sg/index.asp

BTW, don't bother doing online purchases. Mustafa tried to go into the Internet age but failed to do so.

Pardon me for the pictures but these are taken with a Nokia 6233.

Without much delay, here are the stuff. The prices are in Singapore Dollars (SGD).

Omega Brushes. The clear plastic case one costs 15 and the Professional is 10.50 As you can see there are some smaller brushes around them and these two are the largest brushes available.

Omega Eucalyptus Shave Cream. The regular ones selling around and touted to be the same as Proraso. Costs 4.50 for a 150mL tube. The black shave soap container can be seen on the right beside it. Costs 5.50 for the soap.

Gillette Shave Cream at 3.70 per tube. Red is regular and green is lime. The blue ones not in view are above it. Those are menthol. Made in Lebanon for Gillette UK.

Godrej Shave Cream from Godrej Consumer Industries, India. Costs 2.50, can't really remember. Red is regular and blue is menthol. 100mL tube.

Palmolive Classic Shave Cream with Palm Extract. 3.50 I think. You can see the blue Gillette Shave Cream tubes stacked on the glass shelf just above them.

Nivea Mild Shaving Cream. 3.80 for 100mL tube. Made in Germany. You can see the green bottles of Skin Bracer beside it on the right.

 

[genie47]

Now for the blades. These are Croma blades from Germany. Kinda pricey at 7.50 for a pack of 5X 5 blades.

Made by Feintechnik. Visit their website: www.feintechnik.com A visit reveals they make scientific grade histology grade blades that slice and dice tissues.

Astra blades. Made in the Czech Republic. Otherwise you can call them Czech Gillettes because Gillette bought the Astra blade company way back in 1996. This is a box of 100.

Now here is a real mystery. These blades are called Shogun with Japan emblazoned on them. The Shogun brand is also selling in Mustafa as TTO safety razor. I have one myself. Aggressive like at 11 on a scale of 10. Made my face into hamburger always. The same Shogun box TTO is seen selling on eBay as Feather TTO safety razor! Has the same words on it with "Popular" except it is Feather on eBay as compared to Shogun at Mustafa. I would have taken a picture of it but the phone battery went weak and didn't allow me to take anymore pictures.

 

[rhinoyahoo]

Wow, Genie...terrific report!! Now, I hope that I can return to Singapore, to check this place out.

Thx!
Jim

 

[genie47]

Yes yes, do come down. Bring Cap'n Jack Sparrow too!

 

[Ernie]

All those are quite intriguing.

 

[hereandnow]

I looked at the website. That Mustafa Center is open 24 hours? Am I reading correctly?

 

[genie47]

You did not read wrongly. The place is open 24/7. How'd you like that, a department store that never closes.

 

[roughrider]

What are the prices on the 100 packs?

 

[super4]

Here are some further prices from Mustafa Shopping Centre, to complement genie47's great price list.

Those interested in Feather products might be interested to know that all of Shogun's items are labeled as Feather products on the price tags. Perhaps Shogun is an O.E.M version of Feather?


Additional prices gleaned from Mustafa Shopping Center:

A pack of 100 Astra razor blades - S$8.00

A pack of 100 Shogun razor blades - S$12.00

A pack of 25 Shogun razor blades - S$3.90


Shogun DE safety razor (similar to Gillette Tech, 3 piece) - S$2.90

Shogun DE safety razor (similar to Gillette Super Speed, Twist To Open) - S$6.50

Lord's DE safety razor (TTO, black plastic handle, questionable workmanship) S$3.80

* Caveat: Those who buy any of the above DE safety razors are advised not to use those razor blades that come with the razor. Those samples do not cut well and you are better off replacing them with regular blades.


Straight Shavers can buy these two types of straight razors there:

1. Kai(feather) Straight Razor. All metal handle. Includes a box of 10 disposable straight razor blades - S$14.00
The disposable straight razor blades are also sold separately - 10 blades for S$4.60.

2. Filarmonica Straight Shavette - S$12 (Spanish company. Plastic handle. Think it will accept half of a regular DE razor blade which is snapped into 2 lengthwise.)


Godrej Shaving Cream 70 ml (Regular/Lime Fresh/Menthol Mist) - S$1.90
.

 

[super4]

Those who have not tried the Japanese shaving products before can get these items there:

1. GATSBY SHAVING CREAM

2. KAI(feather) MENTHOL SHAVING GEL - S$4.90

3. GATSBY SHAVING GEL 185 gm tube - S$6+ (Also available from any of the usual pharmacies around town.)

[youtube]dS8zkEnhPaQ[/youtube](Itai is means ouch) .

 

[super4]

I cant seem to be able to get Proraso Shaving Cream here in Singapore.

Anyone knows where I can buy it here, without doing mail order from overseas?

 

[duna]

I cant seem to be able to get Proraso Shaving Cream here in Singapore.

Anyone knows where I can buy it here, without doing mail order from overseas?

buy Omega shaving cream or soap, if still available. Same stuff as Proraso (it is also made by Proraso), at least in Italy, and I sincerely think the same stuff is sold elsewhere.

 

[super4]

Thanks for the suggestion duna. I'm currently using Omega and find that its Eucalyptus' cooling sensation is fairly mild and not as strong as mentioned by users of Proraso (green). Nevertheless, I agree that Omega is a great shaving cream.

 

[super4]

Safety Razor Blades

Part of the fun of using safety razors is experimenting with various combinations of razor and blades.

In Singapore, razor blades generally cost about S$0.08 – S$0.23 each.

Mustafa Shopping Center seems to be the last bastion for wet shavers in Singapore. They carry these razor blades there : Gillette(Russian made), Astra(Czech), Croma(German), Shogun[feather?](Japan), Kai(Japan), Speed Max(India), Vidyut(India).

One dollar shops and Indian corner shops are good places to hunt for other types of razor blades. Here are some alternatives :

DORCO Platinum ST300 (Korean).

A box of 10 blades costs S$1.50. Available near Bugis Junction at THK ENTERPRISES, 62 Queen Street. Click here for the map.


GILLETTE NACETS Platinum . Red cardboard packaging printed with a green crocodile. Packaged for the Malaysian domestic market. 5+1 blades for S$1.40. Available in Chinatown at CHINATOWN WHOLESALE CENTER, 58 Smith Street. Click here for the map.
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