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Market Saturation?

Absolutely agree. Need ≠ Want

But sometimes, the more expensive or rarer option is better in some way, at least for some people.

How much it is better, how much that matters, and what that difference is worth, all result in different people having different priorities.

I think you'd agree that there's some difference between a Wolfman WR3 and a Lord L6, for example.

Whether that difference matters or not to you, or me, or any one particular buyer is what makes the market diverse.

pretty sure this razor beats the others out. AND its an actual Gillette TECH... adn it doesnt have the nasty thick cast cap with the rapira logo on it...
 
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Are you saying that this Gillette is better than a Wolfman? Like, in any tangible way? Because, that's what it sounds like you're saying...
Of course its better then a wolfman.

1. Its roughly 340-415 dollars LESS
2. Its a Gillette
3. It came with a free razor blade. Or in the history of gillette. I bought a single razor blade for 6.99$ and got a free Tech razor with it.
4. Its in my posession
5. Its a razor. It will do what I need it to do.
6. The Wolfman razor name, and the behavior I have associated with it through interactions with users in past years.. makes me hand my head and shudder.

So will every other razor I own. I actually lost count of how many I own. Wooohoooo
 
Blackland owns Above the Tie now.
I think Shane said something about releasing their first offering soon, during his latest 25% off video.


I'm a post-ATT newbie wet shaver so this interests me.
There is a new Above the Tie website separate from the site for Blackland's other products. New razors, starting with the S1 slant, will be out in January. The URL is abovethetie.com
 
Are you saying that this Gillette is better than a Wolfman? Like, in any tangible way? Because, that's what it sounds like you're saying...
I will pretend you compared Blackbird to Tech, since I don't really love any Wolfman designs, but...

This depends if you are talking about the abstact object or a single occurrence of that abstract object. A modern CNC razor from a good maker in a high cost location is going to suit the desires of many enthusiasts better, but the Tech is way more important and suits the requirements of regular people far better. The Tech is far more innovative and impactful. It is also going to work better for more people, just not here.

It is sort of like comparing an expensive dedicated racecar, like a Ferrari with a roll cage and Hoosiers to a normal car that has airbags, all wheel drive, and all season tires. Yeah the Ferrari is in a different league of performance, but also, there is a reason normal cars have windows and airbags.
 
I will pretend you compared Blackbird to Tech, since I don't really love any Wolfman designs, but...

This depends if you are talking about the abstact object or a single occurrence of that abstract object. A modern CNC razor from a good maker in a high cost location is going to suit the desires of many enthusiasts better, but the Tech is way more important and suits the requirements of regular people far better. The Tech is far more innovative and impactful. It is also going to work better for more people, just not here.

It is sort of like comparing an expensive dedicated racecar, like a Ferrari with a roll cage and Hoosiers to a normal car that has airbags, all wheel drive, and all season tires. Yeah the Ferrari is in a different league of performance, but also, there is a reason normal cars have windows and airbags.
I see what you're saying, but I don't entirely agree with your analogy.

I could play devil's advocate and say the Gillette is more like a stock original Volkswagen Beetle while the Blackbird is more like a Lucid Sapphire with all the bells and whistles.

But I want to be clear -- this is all a matter of personal values, preferences and priorities.

I know Gecko45 was mostly joking, but to be honest, the price of an item doesn't make it better or worse -- only more or less accessible. The brand name doesn't matter. Whether you have it or not doesn't make it better.

Whether it does the job isn't really the issue -- it is how the job is done that makes a tool's value change.

That "how" is the tricky part, because all of those calculations people make to estimate the "value" of something are very, very different.
 
I will pretend you compared Blackbird to Tech, since I don't really love any Wolfman designs, but...
I will also pretend the Wolf pack doesn't ride with one and has given one the bird instead 😉 😏
This is the prefect market of choices, I do me, you do you. The age old debate of function over form... the minimalist over the grandiose... history over prophecy ... is going to continue and we are as consumers better for it.
The market to me feels fatigued today, the BST less interesting but then it's just me. It feels awaiting something of an x-factor for the new generation of users and buyers to come in... perhaps minimalism is on the rise.
 
We are just lucky we all have a wide spectrum of choices.
I certianly appreciate it.
It remains of my days when I was super passionate about motorcycles. There was about 12 of us that rode together a lot. We all had the same attitude about it.
It not about what you are riding, as long as you are riding...

The Love of the Ride..

Love the Shave...

BFX


I will use this again..

The more we value things, the less we value our selves. — We should devote ourselves to being self-sufficient and must not depend upon the external rating by others for our happiness. So it is true that the more we value things, the less we value our self. The more we depend upon others for esteem, the less we are self-sufficient.
Bruce Lee
 
My reflection I'm not discussing the big manufacturers but for the small, unestablished artisan producers who cannot invest large sums of money to expand their business,the day comes when they get tired of keeping up with the constant whims and demands for novelty from us enthusiasts.

That is why if it is done as a hobby, with little capital, it is easier for a passion, a promotion in their main job to make them decide to stop making of the soap and brush. Quite understandable and legitimate.
If many of these small artisans when they enter cannot invest more money and do not innovate it is a foregone conclusion that they must exit the market as quickly as they entered.
In the beginning maybe there is passion and when you start to produce, you can afford to give away to other shaving enthusiasts or have word of mouth go around and it's well spoken, I don't feel like there's so much excellence that has to last or the excessive prices for products that don't deserve that much.

Then other goals in life, new projects, changes, and the passion for shaving or manufacturing gets put aside, evidently I think you had not invested so much in the business if after a few years you decide to close.
Personal decisions and choices, sorry but new artisans of soap, brush or shaving razor will enter.
Fortunately, that of wet shaving is a responsive and evolving market.

For DE razors the talk more complicated, it is already more difficult to enter the market as manufacturers, too many clones, competition from China and even there the prices of many razor productions seem to me to have increased a lot in recent years.
Honestly, I am among those who if I know that the double edge razor is the same as the EU or American company has it made in China,even though it is only a clone and does not have the brand name if I find it cheap, I can afford to buy it directly on the Chinese marketplaces I don't think too much about it,I don't make a big deal about buying it cheaper right away.
 
Do you think we are in danger of losing some of our beloved brands or artisans and vendors? I ask because of the recent closure of Executive Shaving in the UK. Several years ago, near me, Old Town Shaving closed, but I think that was the owner going into retirement. Art of Shaving I believe has closed all its stores. I know they were owned by P&G and hated by many, but I think their presence in malls and such did a lot to help garner back interest into wet-shaving or at least winning a lot of people over to using a DE razor. I thought I read here on the forum somewhere that Shavemac may be going under and that they recently stopped selling online via their website. Presently they are only selling through a handful of vendors. Above the Tie etc. I hope I'm wrong.

Are we at the point now where "only the strong will survive," as the old saying goes? I'm not sure why I'm bringing this up. I just see this stuff and it makes me sad. I guess I'm just looking for reassurance that it will all be OK lol.

Am I making much ado about nothing?
I really found this post interesting. When it comes to wet shaving, many of us enjoy variety and purchase an abundance of software/hardware. For smaller artisans, this could mean they get one or two sales per person, and the chance to have a steady flow of business may be slim to none. Therefore, they rely on new customers and business and need to make a impact right off the bat rather than later on.

Also, wet shaving is still a niche market and still has a limited audience. As mentioned, AOS decided to go fully online, removed about 50% of their product line focusing almost completely on software and now offer promotions/sales when before you would never even hear of a sale from them even during the holiday season. I can imagine they may have dropped in sales, but their profitability is up allowing them to survive.

You're right on the market. It is saturated. For some of these smaller artisans, they will need to gain new customers, in addition to catering to their client base. Looks like AOS is a good example.
 
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