Grooming Dept club

[Gobucks01]

I have no grip at all with GD but it really washes out because he use to offer free delivery in the US.
Yes lower cost 2-4 bucks bucks more soap (because we all can use that extra ounce to die for ha ha) but going to add 6 bucks shipping?
GD is great to deal with. I recently questioned a pre shave I purchased and the synthetic coolant being to weak. He was concerned about my dissatisfaction and sent me extra additive.
I will still order from this outstanding company.

 

[guitarslinger]

He also just posted this:
"
No other soap on the market beside Grooming Dept that uses Aloe Vera Juice in lieu of water. Aloe vera juice is mostly water. But the part that is not water is loaded with phenomenal skin food elements. After some the water/aloe evaporates loads of good stuff stays in GD soaps. And considering every GD jar has more soap than quantity stated. Grooming Dept soap are worth your money

I'm not a chemist, but I learnt a lot about chemistry from published articles like these. Happy reading

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK92765/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4557234/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3611630/

"

Sounds like he's been reading this thread.

 

[GlazedBoker]

Bummer you have to spend $40 to get free shipping now.

There's always a trade off bud. NOTHING is free in this world. Look at it this this way, you get extra product with a new base that has less ingredients, simpler scents and the kicker? It's $10-$12 cheaper, not $2-4 as mentioned in the post above mine for his scented soaps. Ultimately you can bank on it that the base will perform as good if not better than his previous incarnations. $40 might be a bit much for some to handle unfortunately, so you either bite the bullet and spend to get free shipping or just get one and pay the shipping and if it doesn't work out for you, no big lose.

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

all the same yea and nay-ers
we all have our favorite brands and I doubt I could change anyone's mind by saying X is better then Y
I find that PPSF is very real and look for the soap that provides it most for me.
that is the most important quality for me over scent,price,or longevity

I agree with everything I understand you to say here. There aren't many soaps being compared to GD in terms of post shave, but the post shave for a soap I find drying to my skin might be great for you.

Having someone change my mind is way off my radar. The soap itself could be only thing which might have a shot at that one.

On the theory that the most expensive soap is the one you have but don't use I'm just trying to increase the odds I won't add to the boxes of shaving soap.

It occurs to me to mention nobody's mentioned MWF. Used to hear how great its post shave feel was, but I think maybe we're talking about a different animal here. I think a good many of us are interested in long term benefits (not just a nice feeling). Somebody referred to this as post-post shave. I'm not saying MWF doesn't do that for you, but for me its post shave feeling was great yet it seemed drying to my skin.

Unless I'm way off base the soaps being mentioned are very rich in great oils and such. Must be something to this soap enrichment conspiracy. Well, bad term. It's widely done because it works.

Happy shaves,

Jim

 

[naughtilus]

I remember from Body Shop Maca Root threads someone explained that Aloe Vera powder vs gel is used when you want a higher concentration of AV. The powder is x10 more concentrated and more practical since you don't introduce extra water to the mix.

 

[ackvil]

He also just posted this:
"
No other soap on the market beside Grooming Dept that uses Aloe Vera Juice in lieu of water. Aloe vera juice is mostly water. But the part that is not water is loaded with phenomenal skin food elements. After some the water/aloe evaporates loads of good stuff stays in GD soaps. And considering every GD jar has more soap than quantity stated. Grooming Dept soap are worth your money

I'm not a chemist, but I learnt a lot about chemistry from published articles like these. Happy reading

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK92765/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4557234/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3611630/

"

Sounds like he's been reading this thread.

Interesting. I mentioned the Aloe Vera Juice and all of the other ingredients in my earlier post (#75).

 

[A. Feitar]

Bummer you have to spend $40 to get free shipping now.

Shipping is often the biggest expense for sellers! It must cost GD about $5 to ship one soap and around $6.95 to ship two.

By dropping the price and increasing the soap amount, he has addressed most people's major issues. $40 is also one of the lowest thresholds for free shipping I have seen on the market.

 

[guitarslinger]

Shipping is often the biggest expense for sellers! It must cost GD about $5 to ship one soap and around $6.95 to ship two.

By dropping the price and increasing the soap amount, he has addressed most people's major issues.

I mean, I get it, but don't say it's cheaper when you knock off a couple bucks, but then charge shipping.

This wouldn't bother me as much at a bigger shave retailer where it's easy to buy $40 worth of stuff, but what if there's only 1 soap variety in stock in a limited release? I'm buying a duplicate or I'm playing shipping. So, it's not cheaper.

 

[guitarslinger]

There's always a trade off bud. NOTHING is free in this world.

Seriously? bud??! Sheesh.

I'll just buy something else, I guess.

 

[A. Feitar]

I mean, I get it, but don't say it's cheaper when you knock off a couple bucks, but then charge shipping.

This wouldn't bother me as much at a bigger shave retailer where it's easy to buy $40 worth of stuff, but what if there's only 1 soap variety in stock in a limited release? I'm buying a duplicate or I'm playing shipping. So, it's not cheaper.

How is it not cheaper if you will now get 25% more soap and a 15% price reduction??

Stirling Soap: Free shipping with $75 order.
B&M: Free shipping with $75 order. $20-26 four ounce soaps.
Declaration: Free shipping with $75 order. $22 four ounce soaps.
Ariana and Evans: No free shipping. $18-24 four ounce.

He is also offering a new base called Fortis which will be $15 for a 5 ounce tub. In the pipeline are shampoo soaps, splashes etc. Let's be fair here, this is a BOLD action and VERY competitive pricing and shipping for a product that is REMARKABLY BETTER than most soaps.

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

I'd prefer free shipping all the time because it's easier for me to compare prices on an apples to apples basis and I like free things.

Spoiler: Free lunches?

Okay, you're right, but you do too know what I mean.

If I were a small shaving supplies vendor (assuming equal profits in all scenarios) I'd have a free shipping option kick in at about $40 for two reasons.

• To encourage larger sales.
• To encourage trying more than one item in my product line especially if my products were synergistic.
• Because shipping two items or three together is more cost effective.

That's just me.

Happy shaves,

Jim

 

[A. Feitar]

Which would you prefer?

A $24 soap with free shipping or a $20 soap with $4 shipping and free shipping at a $75 threshold?

How about free soap with $24 shipping per container?

 

[GlazedBoker]

Seriously? bud??! Sheesh.

I'll just buy something else, I guess.

Pardon if you felt offended by the “Bud” remark. Not my intention. If it still has left a lingering bad taste, here’s a simple solution.

March into your shave den, slap on your jam session shoes, click your heels once and repeat this verse 3 times “There’s nothing like cheap soap shipped for free, there’s nothing like cheap soap shipped for free, there’s nothing like cheap soap shipped for free”. And believe me, you’ll be right as rain...

Chill & relax, sir. Life’s too fleeting to be fickle over the small things.

Happy shaves Mr. Guitarslinger.....

 

[Chan Eil Whiskers]

...if there's only 1 soap variety in stock in a limited release? I'm buying a duplicate or I'm playing shipping.

Excellent point.

Which of these is true for any one item?

1. The old price (item and "free" shipping) is lower than the new price (item + not-free shipping).
2. The new price (item + not-free shipping) is lower than the old price (item and "free" shipping).
3. It's a tie.

In many cases the shipping seems higher than I think it should, but then again I like the cheap shipping from Connaught in the UK to me in the USA. I've also noticed that it's oftentimes difficult to determine what the shipping cost will be. Free shipping may not exist but it's easy to determine what something costs me when the shipping is free.

Guess we'll find out how it goes for GD and GD customers.

Amazon of course has the best model. Their (Prime) shipping is free but you pay for it.

Happy shaves,

Jim

 

[GlazedBoker]

I'd prefer free shipping all the time because it's easier for me to compare prices on an apples to apples basis and I like free things.

Spoiler: Free lunches?

Okay, you're right, but you do too know what I mean.

If I were a small shaving supplies vendor (assuming equal profits in all scenarios) I'd have a free shipping option kick in at about $40 for two reasons.

• To encourage larger sales.
• To encourage trying more than one item in my product line especially if my products were synergistic.
• Because shipping two items or three together is more cost effective.

That's just me.

Happy shaves,

Jim

Which would you prefer?

A $24 soap with free shipping or a $20 soap with $4 shipping and free shipping at a $75 threshold?

How about free soap with $24 shipping per container?

Gents, not to sound crass or disrespectful to the both of you whom I consider to be staunch supporters and stalwarts on GD soaps, I believe there is an impasse here and your best arguments are moot and will go for naught. You can’t please people all of the time. Some will have the right to gripe even if it’s the most infinitesimal subject to latch on.

That being said, you’re both right.....

 

[jmturley]

If this is all a sign of him ramping up production and going from a niche to a larger company I'm all for it. A cheaper soap might be nice as long as it holds up to the standards I've come to expect from him. Hopefully this is all a sign of great things to come.

And realistically, the only time the factored in shipping was good is if you ordered only one tub. After that it was double or triple the shipping cost because it was factored into the total cost. So, the shipping could be a good thing. Another place I purchased from recently went from free shipping on everything to cost of shipping. Shipping isn't cheap, and to eat that cost can be a big burden on a small company.

 

[A. Feitar]

Gents, not to sound crass or disrespectful to the both of you whom I consider to be staunch supporters and stalwarts on GD soaps, I believe there is an impasse here and your best arguments are moot and will go for naught. You can’t please people all of the time. Some will have the right to gripe even if it’s the most infinitesimal subject to latch on.

That being said, you’re both right.....

Very true. Some people will never be happy no matter what you do.

 

[naughtilus]

$40 is low IMO. Even $50 feels low. You people are spoiled rotten.

 

[pork]

For those of you not on FB

 

[pork]

It seems kind of BS that Mo can't directly address the issues here because he's not a B&B vendor. I can see not allowing him to generate posts to advertise his product, but he's using Facebook to respond to stuff here on B&B, where he's not able to defend himself or his product.