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I think Gillette is on to us

Good observation.
The "proprietary" issue makes sense in that Gillette is, after, all a business. But a proprietary blade would entail investing in a brand new razor format. I'm not saying that wouldn't happen; it's just that there's not much advantage to the shaver to use an exclusive blade if he can something cheaper elsewhere.

I think Gillette would try to undercut the market, and rely on performance and reputation. Sell s precision plastic razor that looks and performs brilliantly. Gillette already has the market edge on blades. The new Gillette razors would cost pennies to make.
 
I could see them pulling the proprietary blade stunt.... But why would they? They already make a DE blade. Why reinvent the wheel? Would their new blades still work in old razors? It wouldn't make sense for them to make a blade that wouldn't work in all of Gillettes DE razors, new and old.
 
I'm guessing Gillette is introducing to the western world the same Tech models sold in India and Russia since ages. These Techs come with plastic handle but I suppose they will introduce them here with metal handle. Unless it is significantly different than the Russian and Indian Techs, I'm not excited. FWIW, you can pick up these from ebay for $4-5 including shipping from India or Russia.
 
Well this's certainly is a bit odd. I actually talked to someone at the local AOS store, they confirmed a retail release date of May. It could be this person who answered your email is not in the loop. Or possibly he was instructed to not confirm this.
I'll have to go check this out if this is released I don't even go to aos but sadly only shaving store around here other than vintage finds or online
 
Even if it's "just" a standard brass tech with chrome plating --- it will still beat the zamak offerings (Muhle and Merkur) in AOS. Even at a 50% price increase over them :)
 
I was in the AoS store in Boston last week, got to chatting with the clerk about DE razors and some that I owned. He also mentioned that Gillette was coming back with a Tech in the same May timeframe. We'll see what pans out. It's interesting that multiple AoS stores are reporting the same info.
 
On second thought, I'm putting my money on a US launch of a Sterling-type razor. They're ultra-cheap ($5), and so profitable that it's not likely to cut into their business. If anything, it's a play to regain the American market that isn't served carts.
 
On second thought, I'm putting my money on a US launch of a Sterling-type razor. They're ultra-cheap ($5), and so profitable that it's not likely to cut into their business. If anything, it's a play to regain the American market that isn't served carts.
Personally, I'd love to see Gillette launch an inexpensive, US market Sterling-type (presumably paired with their Platinum Plus blades) as it would definitely be a shot across the bow to MTO and VdH. That said, I don't see it happening as it would be seen as undercutting their Fusion and Mach 3 lines. (Selling DE blades is a bit different as it is support for a legacy platform, same as Trac II and Atra.)

The AoS razor will be something of a different beast, even if it is just a reborn Tech. It's a product aimed at a more upscale customer and is meant to play on a certain nostalgia (i.e., the great razor that your dad/granddad used, a razor from when America was great, etc.) and is presumed to be premium priced. The big question is what will Gillette do to command a premium price for a reissue of what was their least expensive razor back in the day? Anything less than the original nickel-plated brass will be a complete show stopper and, at the rumored pricing, might still be not enough bang for the buck. In any case, it is likely targeted at a niche market within a niche market, so no harm to Fusion and Mach3.
 
They have deep pockets why pay merkur and others when they can make more margin themselves.

Gillette's business model going all the way back to King Camp Gillette, has been to make money selling blades not razors. In the 1960s their blade dominance was challenged by Wilkinson (tiny market share but it rattled management) and they moved aggressively into proprietary products. While we may ridicule the cart razors, this was a brilliant business move. Gillette today is more worried about share loss to online retailers like Dollar Shave Club than a resurgence in DE. The largest DE markets are in Asia, where they are spending huge marketing dollars to convert them to proprietary "systems" developed for those markets. AOS might get a razor in order to stay competitive in the traditional shaver market, but it won't be a rounding error for P&G.
 
I'm wondering how their ad campaign would run?
after decades of trying to convince the world that
"more blades means a better, smoother, faster shave"
well, what do they say now when they go back to a one-blade razor,
and a non-disposable one at that?
 
I'm wondering how their ad campaign would run?
after decades of trying to convince the world that
"more blades means a better, smoother, faster shave"
well, what do they say now when they go back to a one-blade razor,
and a non-disposable one at that?

I, for one, never paid much attention to their telling me more blades was better. Rather, I just bought whatever happened to appear popular; in my case, that was the Mach3 back then.

But really, they just need to market it as classic, old-school, stylish, etc. It's not contradictory to market both modern and old-fashioned products side by side, because not everyone is looking for the same thing when they go shopping.
 
Gillette's business model going all the way back to King Camp Gillette, has been to make money selling blades not razors. In the 1960s their blade dominance was challenged by Wilkinson (tiny market share but it rattled management) and they moved aggressively into proprietary products. While we may ridicule the cart razors, this was a brilliant business move. Gillette today is more worried about share loss to online retailers like Dollar Shave Club than a resurgence in DE. The largest DE markets are in Asia, where they are spending huge marketing dollars to convert them to proprietary "systems" developed for those markets. AOS might get a razor in order to stay competitive in the traditional shaver market, but it won't be a rounding error for P&G.
This not true. Gillette made money selling the razors at a high price point. They sold blades at a large quantity but their main profit was the high priced razor .

From Harvard business review

https://hbr.org/2010/09/gillettes-strange-history-with
From 1904 through 1921, Gillette could have played razors-and-blades — low-price or free handles and expensive blades — but didn’t. Instead, Gillette set a high price for its handle and fought to maintain those high prices during the life of the patents. The firm understood to have invented razors-and-blades as a business strategy did not play that strategy at the point that it was best situated to do so.
 
One indicator of how much they charged was that the competition wedge safety SE wedge razors were selling for $1.50 with wedge blade. But Gillette asked a whopping five bucks.
 
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