Declining sales at the, "Three T's?"

[SharptoothC]

I went through a stage of artisan soaps when I first got into wet shaving. Now, several years in, I've landed firmly in the heritage camp. The chase was just too much. I found several heritage soaps that work well for me and that have been available for quite some time. The only artisan soap I have stuck with is Stirling, just because they've treated me well and I think they offer a great product and nail the quality/value ratio. Even there, I have enough of their soap alone to shave for years. When (if??? I really have bought wayyyy too much soap) the rest of my artisan soaps get used up, most will not be replaced. I'll go with a simple, small heritage rotation.

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[tonich]

I will not purchase any of the current three T's formulations.
I would choose classics over a random US made artisan soap.
I would buy only French/Italian artisan soaps.


There, I built a pretty straight forward guide for purchasing shaving soaps.

 

[Zwiehander]

I will not purchase any of the current three T's formulations.
I would choose classics over a random US made artisan soap.
I would buy only French/Italian artisan soaps.


There, I built a pretty straight forward guide for purchasing shaving soaps.

I think everyone's mileage differs...my own experience with an italian artisanal soap vs the venerable TOBS found me vastly preferring the latter for the ease in creating great lather. I have yet to try one of the hyped American artisanal soaps but I have ordered quite a few and am eagerly awaiting them to arrive for me to try.

 

[radrick96]

I personally like the idea of artisan soaps. Seems like there’s more nutrients, less nonsense for ingredients. Not that the others aren’t good. I haven’t even tried any heritage brands because I’ve been happy with my two sets of Artisan soap/as from B&M!

 

[GR5233]

I personally like the idea of artisan soaps. Seems like there’s more nutrients, less nonsense for ingredients. Not that the others aren’t good. I haven’t even tried any heritage brands because I’ve been happy with my two sets of Artisan soap/as from B&M!

So far I’ve pretty much been the opposite of you. I’ve pretty much been using heritage soaps with the exception of some soap that I’ve made myself. TOBS sandalwood is a good performer and the scent level is just right. The only complaint I have is that the scent has a synthetic smell to it

 

[vtmax]

IIRC, SV shaving soap base is made in China. They mill it and add their magic stuff, but it’s Chinese soap ‘noodles’ at the base.

Nothing wrong with that, it’s an interesting model.

I agree, SV is not making their own base.

Does that mean that they are not artisan?

I try and visit Italy’s lake region every year and have been to the Saponificio Varesino HQ in Brebbia.

The claims above are false. Lies really. Maybe competition from other soap makers or a smear campaign. Who knows.

Here is Marco’s from SV response to the above claims:


“Unfortunately, there are those who spread false and defamatory information on the web.
It is well known that our soap is vegetable and palm free.
In 2013 we created palm free soap formulation... we were probably the first soap factory in Europe to do so.
We start from a mixture of vegetable oils and saponify them in our Brebbia plant.
To this saponification we add a series of ingredients that give life to our shaving products.
Responding to these people, who claim that soap noodles are bought in China or any other Asian area, is very easy:

- First of all, in China, Malaysia or Indonesia, a palm free vegetable soap has never been produced (why would they ever produce it, since Asia is the largest producer of palm oil?)
- Secondary, our saponification "Sodium Cocoate, Sodium Rapeseedate, Sodium Sunflower Seedate" is unique and to date there are no soap factories that produce soap noodles with this INCI.

The formulation of all our shaving soap is completely different and UNIQUE compared to any other shaving product on the market .... this solely aspect should make those who have a minimum of brain understand that the terms "UNIQUE" and "Chinese soap noodles" are not compatible.

The admin should take action against these interventions, which leave room for legal actions to protect the brand, as defamation is a crime.

Feel free to copy/paste our reply on the forum board.”

Best Regards,
SV Staff

 

[vtmax]

Do you have any backup for this claim? Because IMO that is bordering on slander. I've never heard of chinese soap noodles aside of early US Artisans, which then probably made sense for them, just getting their feet wet in their own kitchens.

btw here a video from the SV youtube channel:

- showing how the soap is made from scratch.

Thank you for posting this.

I have seen the soap base production in house in Brebbia, Italy on the lovely shores of Lake Maggiore. Everything is made in house. It’s an impressive operation.

This is where the forums are dangerous. People writing anything and others believing it. Stunning.

 

[Steve56]

What I remember - and I’m still looking for the thread though I may not be able to post a link here if ai do find it - is that they outsourced their SHAVING soap base. They certainly have manufactured soap bases for years. FYI, I own and use SV.

But it doesn’t matter, right? Soap is soap!

Cut Out the Artisan Crap...Soap is Soap!

This is a hobby - B&B is definitely not about shaving out of necessity - its about enjoying the process of shaving. If people are drawn strongly to pay extra for certain brands / products because they feel better for using them, then that's a personal choice and not my business to complain...

www.badgerandblade.com

 

[RayClem]

What I remember - and I’m still looking for the thread though I may not be able to post a link here if ai do find it - is that they outsourced their SHAVING soap base. They certainly have manufactured soap bases for years. FYI, I own and use SV.

But it doesn’t matter, right? Soap is soap!

Cut Out the Artisan Crap...Soap is Soap!

This is a hobby - B&B is definitely not about shaving out of necessity - its about enjoying the process of shaving. If people are drawn strongly to pay extra for certain brands / products because they feel better for using them, then that's a personal choice and not my business to complain...

www.badgerandblade.com

From a chemistry standpoint, soap is the ester (salt) of a fatty acid produced by the reaction the fatty acid with a strong alkali such as sodium or potassium hydroxide.

However, there is where the similarity ends. Soaps can be produced from a wide variety of fatty acids sourced from either animal or vegetable sources. These fatty acids can vary in polymer chain length as well as in the degree of saturation (saturated, mono-saturated, poly-saturated). The characteristics of the soap will differ significantly based on the types of fatty acids used in the formulation. Soaps can also differ in the degree of saponification- how much of the fatty acids have been converted to esters and how much remains as fats and oils. Various non-soap additives can be added to enhance specific attributes to the soap.

Yes, you can shave with a bar of lye soap, but it is not likely to be a pleasant experience. You can shave with Castile soap produced from olive and lauryl oils, but the lather is not really suitable for shaving. If you want a superb shave, use a high-quality soap designed for shaving.