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Free Mach 3 marketing scheme

When I turned 16 years old (in 1998) I remember receiving a package with a free Mach 3, a couple of spare cartridges, and can of gel inside. I have to admit, I fell for it and used those products for 7 years before going to an electric and then DE recently.

I was curious, did anyone else have a similar experience or see other marketing schemes like this?
 
Haha i used to get fusion cartridges in the mail all the time! Guess they can afford it with their 4000%+ profit :lol:
 
Admittedly, as well, when I had a birthday about 4 years ago or so, Gillette sent me a Fusion. Also, I think some shampoo and maybe a face scrub were in there. Well, I tried it, and I "liked it". If I recall correctly, I went out and bought the Fusion Power within the week, and then paid for the $3 or so cartridges for a few years or so. I probably spent close to $150 to $200 on those cartridges. Then I read about wet shaving and DE razors, and bought 100 blades off of Amazon for like 17 shipped. But Gillette and the other companies do know exactly what they are doing, and I don't blame them really. They are simply doing what works for them. The irony of the situation would be if the masses switched to wet shaving and DE razors. But that'll never happen!
 
I bought the Pro Glide Power for $2 shipped when it came out. I couldn't afford the cartridges though. :laugh: Before that they had sent me the fusion power in the mail for free, which I actually bought cartridges for. In my defense, I bought them from ebay for about $30 for 40 (yes, authentic cartridges). I remember getting that Mach 3 kit as well when I was a teen. I was 18 in 1998, so that sounds about right. But I also received free razors from Schick. I didn't really know any better, other than I was getting free razors... they weren't winning my loyalty or anything like that. But I did buy cartridges for the mach 3 from an actual store!!! So the marketing ploy did work.
 
This is called the Loss Leader style of marketing. The company takes a loss on the initial product knowing that the cost of replacement items needed to continue utilizing the product will more than make up for the original loss.

More Here: Wikipedia - Loss Leader
 
I received a Mach 3 about the same time frame and used it for 4-5 years before switching to the fusion, then the schick quatro. I still use it atleast for the next few days until my DE gear gets here.
 
I should have gone to the army to get that free Gillette sample. No-one was delivering them in colleges or sending to homes.
 
I recall that I got an Atra handle Free in my collage days, when I moved into the dorms, it came in a package I got with the dorm room. My MachIII handle, is another freebee that popped up in my mailbox about 1998 or so. I'm one of those people that can keep a cartridge going for weeks, till it's practically pulling whiskers out... Need to stop that.. switching to a straight...
 
When I was a freshman in 1983 at NC State a received a red and white (school colors) plastic Gillette handle. A year later, when I transferred to UNC Charlotte, there was a green and white (school colors) handle in my orientation packet. Fast forward - today, 28 years later, I will attempt my first DE shave. I think the pennies Gillette spent on those handles had a pretty good ROI for them!
 
I got a free Mach 3 handle and some cartridges sometime around 1980-81 ar the NHRA summernationals in Englishtown NJ. Used it until about 7-8 months ago. That's a lot of cartridges! Good thing I had a full beard for about 25 years. Once I shaved my beard off, I was disappointed with the shave of the Mach 3(great for edge trimming), and discovered wet shaving. My son is 15, gave him a superspeed, some Proraso and a brush for Christmas.
 
Got a free Atra (aluminum handle, still have it) at my high school and used it for 27 years....their marketers were not stupid!
 
N

NoelyDeezNutz

I got a free Mach 3 handle and some cartridges sometime around 1980-81 ar the NHRA summernationals in Englishtown NJ. Used it until about 7-8 months ago. That's a lot of cartridges! Good thing I had a full beard for about 25 years. Once I shaved my beard off, I was disappointed with the shave of the Mach 3(great for edge trimming), and discovered wet shaving. My son is 15, gave him a superspeed, some Proraso and a brush for Christmas.

You got a mach 3 in 1980?
 
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