Mantic's Musings: Fusion, Proraso, and What's Next?

[vcardona]

I agree with Nick. I doubt you'll see department stores carrying DE or SE razors any time soon. Perhaps thats a possibility in more upscale ones, but certainly not Target and the like.

Shaving creams and soaps though are different. Here you could easily see a greater selection of quality shave soaps and creams at major retailers.

So what can we do? Well we continue educating those that want a better shave. Our money advocates for us every time we buy. If you like Proraso, and wish to encourage Target to carry more items like it then buy it there.

 

[Keljian]

The biggest problem with SE and DE razors is the learning curve.

Any moron with half a peanut sized brain can shred off their whiskers in a semi alert state with a mach 3 or fusion and the latest and greatest shave gel. Sure it costs more, but they are likely to get a "reasonable" shave quicker (1 pass/multiple blades) and the fact that the second/third/fourth blades don't usually have any lubrication in the form of lather just means they'll blunt quicker - which results in better sales.

Before we even go to the other types of shaving there is the consideration of "we could cut ourselves" with the other types of razors. Handling blades required for DE or SE shaving is dangerous if proper care isn't taken, and carrying a SE razor is equivalent to carrying a deadly weapon, as realistically it could be (mis)used as one.

A DE razor user is different, getting a good DE shave requires more than one pass, a good blade angle, a reasonable amount of skill and some way of disposing of the razor sharp blades afterward, as most people don't realise there are slots for storing the blades in the packaging.

A SE razor user is a level up again, with stropping and honing being two necessary skills to maintain and keep a SE in good condition. Not to mention the actual shave which necessitates the use of reasonable pre-shave, shave and post shave products to give it a good finish. Of course you can do the same with the other forms of shaving but it isn't quite as necessary. The skill required in actually shaving with a straight is a major detractor in this world of "need results now"/convenience.

I think a resurgence will start to happen in terms of pampering oneself before/during/after the shave as quality of life becomes more of a consideration in the world, as it already has started to, but I think that the future is along the lines of "simple, low irritation, low maintenance" rather than a reverting to the old style razors. there will be niche communities (such as this one) that will specialise in SE and DE use, but I seriously doubt it will become mainstream again.

 

[mulepackin]

It is interesting to reread this thread and see how things have waxed and waned in the world of wet shaving. While I'm sure we'll never see things like the Fusion and canned goo go away, I'm equally sure wet shaving won't die out. No, it will probably never become "mainstream" again, but at least for me and I'm sure many others, that is part of what makes it so enjoyable. I enjoy my quest for products and equipment, whether it be on-line, in big box stores, mom and pop's, or junk and antiques stores. Believe me, in my part of the country it really is a quest, but that just makes a good find that much more enjoyable and ultimately the BBS shave I get with the fruits of my labors is also that much more savory. While we are a minority in what we do, I don't think any of us really care about that. This forum and wet shaving unites us, allows us to share our views on our hobby and myriad other topics and ultimatley opens our eyes to many other new (or old) things and makes our lives fuller

 

[omarwashington]

As I walked into this new store in our local mall, which has been open for about three or four months long. I was surprised to see (pardon my sexual discrimination) women behind the counter at AOS. I was thinking to myself women don’t have facial hair, duh. Then this is when I began to notice a trend.

Back in the days when both my father and I would get our hair cut at the naval exchange, I remember the barber using a straight razor and some cream which he would use to get the neck hairs with. Then the barber would finish off with a quick shoulder massage and I’m sure there are barbers that still do this.

Where I’m trying to get at is that wet shaving I assume will be somewhat of a status symbol. Kind of like fine wine and almost the same as getting service from a drive up coffee stand where only cute baristas work. Kind of like I drive a Ferrari and you drive a civic(I’m sure a lot of you have heard of this analogy).

 

[coop1960]

I've tried the Fusion. Someone gave me one as a gift. They are ok. Gillette perfected their razor line when they came out with the MachIII Turbo. This said, Gillette will in 5 or so years come up with something else to separate us from our money.

 

[coop1960]

Here is the next thing in shaving. The Roomba. Just like the robot that vacums your carpet while you do whatever. The Roomba shaver that shaves you when you do whatever.
http://www.roombareview.com/buy/roomba/

 

[TorzJohnson]

I went into Target today to look for blades and see what aftershaves they had. Of course I didn't even bother looking for Proraso but in the back of my mind I had fantasies of finding a few leftover tubes in the bargain bin.

On the shaving aisle, there was exactly one aftershave: Aqua Velva. That was it. I mean, no Old Spice or Skin Bracer or awful Gillette aftershaves that you find in the most humble shaving sections. No DE blades at all.

There was also a single bottle of Lectric Shave, yet dozens and dozens of electric razors. The rest of the two-sided aisle was made up of plastic Adidas-style razors, overpriced cartridges, canned gels and foams. This shaving section was huge - there were literally hundreds of mass-market McShaving items and not one decent thing to be seen besides the AV. It's sad when my own medicine cabinet has more variety than a freaking super-store.

I looked for witch hazel too - they have a huge pharmacy department. There was one brand of witch hazel... generic. Target has nothing left for us whatsoever.

 

[DEmac]

I am too lazy to read the entire thread, so I'm sorry if someone has already said this, but...

I think Gillett may have shot them selves in the foot with the Fusion. They stuck a single blade on the back of it for doing touch-ups. A good portion of men are going to notice that the single blade by itself does a great job and wonder "hey, why the hell am I spending $4 for a six bladed cartridge when the single blade on the back of it works great?" I think they may have converted more men to traditional wet shaving with that move than we could do by proselytizing (which I think may be a bad idea).

I think you can contribute more of wet shaving’s recent success to the zeitgeist more than anything else. I see this as being closely related to the slow food movement etc. Sort of like the Zen Habits article, I originally found out about wet shaving by stumbling onto a Mother Jones article from the 1960’s while searching for the most environmentally friendly way to remove the hair from my face. The way it’s going appears to be positive. I’m afraid that if we try to actively proselytize we may end up looking like a bunch of obnoxious eccentrics. Plenty of people are finding us on their own; there is no need to go pulling people in.

Besides, if demand for wet shaving supplies increases than prices will go up, we don’t want that now do we?

 

[prophetic_joe]

I know one thing that brought me over initially was price. Those cartridges are spendy darn it but looking at things it could easily be more expensive to wet shave, some of the products here are pretty expensive as well. I will probably stick with it though as the blade price is much cheaper and i do like the way the DE that I have shaves. So really I agree about Gillette shooting themselves in the foot a little I can't really see myself spending $15 on a pack of 8 cartridges not when I can get a more enjoyable shave with my DE. Gillette did sell me my DE though in a round about way.

 

[DEmac]

So really I agree about Gillette shooting themselves in the foot a little I can't really see myself spending $15 on a pack of 8 cartridges not when I can get a more enjoyable shave with my DE. Gillette did sell me my DE though in a round about way.

$15? Try $25

 

[prophetic_joe]

$15? Try $25

You know when I posted that I was trying to determine whether it was the4 pack or the 8 pack that was around $15, I posted that it was the 8 but after your post and checking today I'll be damned it's the 4. That $15 dollars for a 4 pack holy crap, yeah I'll stick with the DE.

 

[New2DEShaving_Montreal]

Mark raises some really good points. However, with the current state of economy, and research, I found out that people are looking for value more these days than anything.

Fusion and other multi-hack scrape and pray devices are for the masses, but then again, usually in life, there's more rubbish to be found than good. Which is what sets all of us apart right off the bat. Usually, people like us are the ones who create trends, and if one of us happens to be someone in a powerful position to change 'wetshaving' and make it mass marketable, it can happen. After all, wasn't that what the original creators of the now 'most hated by us' shaving devices were trying to accomplish?

I think each type of this hardware has its pros and cons, and the makers usually intended it for the better. So I am wondering, if the Fusion cartridge were to cost $0.15, how many of us would be using it? I can safely say that I would still stick to my DE, because I appreciate the time, and skill required in this honored tradition. So we are a special bunch of die hard old school folks who look forward to the next shave, while the mass population dreads it.

I once carried my father's own Gillette knack in my pocket into stores looking to find blades for it, this was about 4 months ago. Not a single person knew what it even was. It shocked them to see this DE razor. Ofcourse, they had the blades, but they didn't even know they had them! So I think the problem is, many people don't even know about it, and those of us who do, don't speak much of it to the next generation.

My apologies if I have gone off the topic here, it is our small group that can make a difference. But then a question comes to mind, that if our ways became mass marketed, wouldn't big corporations want to profit? Can anyone imagine DE blade prices sky rocketing to 14, 15, 20 dollars a pack? I cannot imagine that at all. That would be death to DE shaving as we know it. However it is not possible ofcourse because most people around the world still use DE razors. Only the Americans/Canadians are into this new type of Mach3 and on hoopla, but it was still worth imagining a world where we pay gold for rocks.

You guys should check out my petition page where we discuss possibilities and ofcourse are seeking a solution, for even more variety. Take a look and let's network together and find some solutions.

http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php?t=36548

 

[SpartanIV]

I found a knife shop in the mall here that sells Merkur DE's, Merkur blades, Vulfix brushes, and some other wetshaving stuff. Good prices on it all too!

So if you haven't already, go by your local malls knife/blade shop and look around a bit, you might be surprised!