MenEssentials

[jay_gord]

I've placed a few orders with these guys and have been very pleased with my experience. They carry some US artisan soaps like Strop Shoppe and Al's. They also have a decent selection of blades like Iridiums and Med Preps. The cost of shipping is only $5 if your order is under $50 (free if its over) which is less than most of ME's competitors.

I'm curious if any fellow canuckers, who live in the GTA, have been to the store and what their experiences have been. I think its great that there is acutally a store that you can go in to and browse around.

 

[AceByTerror]

I've been the the store once and had the pleasure of talking with Seth, the owner at length. I live about 1 hour away, but I will most definitely be back!

This is a fantastic walk-in location and Seth is a great guy and enthusiastic wet shaver himself. You can tell he shares the same passion for this thing as we do.

A huge selection in the store than you can check out. Worth the visit if you are in the area!

/Rob

 

[jay_gord]

I've been the the store once and had the pleasure of talking with Seth, the owner at length. I live about 1 hour away, but I will most definitely be back!

This is a fantastic walk-in location and Seth is a great guy and enthusiastic wet shaver himself. You can tell he shares the same passion for this thing as we do.

A huge selection in the store than you can check out. Worth the visit if you are in the area!

/Rob

That's good to hear. I haven't been to TO in a long time but I will defnitely be visiting ME next time I'm there. Until then I'll keep on ordering.

 

[jasonb8736]

I've placed a few orders with these guys and have been very pleased with my experience. They carry some US artisan soaps like Strop Shoppe and Al's. They also have a decent selection of blades like Iridiums and Med Preps. The cost of shipping is only $5 if your order is under $50 (free if its over) which is less than most of ME's competitors.

I'm curious if any fellow canuckers, who live in the GTA, have been to the store and what their experiences have been. I think its great that there is acutally a store that you can go in to and browse around.

I've ordered mainly from ItalianBarber and Fendrihan. No complaints with either but I tend to prefer ItalianBarber because of Joe's personal customer service. I'll have to give MensEssentials a try based on your positive experience.

 

[jay_gord]

I've ordered mainly from ItalianBarber and Fendrihan. No complaints with either but I tend to prefer ItalianBarber because of Joe's personal customer service. I'll have to give MensEssentials a try based on your positive experience.

I've ordered from both as well. I think both are awesome and will continue to order from IB and Fendrihan. IB's selection can't be beat and it continues to expand. ME has a few items I haven't found with any other vendor based in Canada and the $5 flat rate shipping is nice if you want to place a small order. The ability to walk into a store is also cool.

 

[jasonb8736]

I've ordered from both as well. I think both are awesome and will continue to order from IB and Fendrihan. IB's selection can't be beat and it continues to expand. ME has a few items I haven't found with any other vendor based in Canada and the $5 flat rate shipping is nice if you want to place a small order. The ability to walk into a store is also cool.

I'm in Toronto fairly often due to my daughters' travel hockey schedules. I will certainly have to check it out. I see they carry Stroppe Shoppe and QCS soaps. Those are both soaps I've never tried and would consider now that the shipping price is reasonable.

 

[jay_gord]

I'm in Toronto fairly often due to my daughters' travel hockey schedules. I will certainly have to check it out. I see they carry Stroppe Shoppe and QCS soaps. Those are both soaps I've never tried and would consider now that the shipping price is reasonable.

That's what I did. I looked to order from the strop shoppe website directly but the shipping was as much as the soap. So when I saw that ME carried their soap I was able to order some (for the same price) and then get some other items in the same order. I wonder if ME will try to set up distribution with other artisan soap makers. That would be fantastic.

 

[jasonb8736]

That's what I did. I looked to order from the strop shoppe website directly but the shipping was as much as the soap. So when I saw that ME carried their soap I was able to order some (for the same price) and then get some other items in the same order. I wonder if ME will try to set up distribution with other artisan soap makers. That would be fantastic.

I bit the bullet and ordered a couple of pucks of Barrister and Mann a bit ago. I paid as much for the shipping as I did for the soaps. I couldn't resist due to the overwhelming popularity of the B&M soaps. I've used primarily RazoRock soaps this year. Now that the Stoppe Shoppe soaps are more accessible for me, I may try them. I think they've had rave reviews as well, IIRC.

 

[Icarium]

I'm in Toronto fairly often due to my daughters' travel hockey schedules. I will certainly have to check it out. I see they carry Stroppe Shoppe and QCS soaps. Those are both soaps I've never tried and would consider now that the shipping price is reasonable.

i was in there alone a couple of weeks ago for exactly the same 2 brands and picked up one of each
nothing beats choosing a brand you want to try and be able to sniff test it first to zero in on your preference
it was super educational for me on a personal level too
i know my sense of smell is poor, lifelong smoker, but was very surprised to find i couldn't smell much scent from most of the brands
now know i overwhelmed my nose after the first sniff and need a few minutes before trying another scent
i picked up strop shoppe Limited Edition - 1887 with Tallow and Lanolin and qcs Esquire
the sniff test is worth the extra dollar or 2 you pay when in the store vs blindly buying online
on a side note, what i smell does not match what my wife, brother and friend smell
brother, non-smoker, said esquire smelled like wet paint to him from the tub
i get a nice rich cologne scent and my wife was in between both on this
check out the d r harris Windsor too
it worked for my nose too but will buy it after i run down my stockpile a bit
will be interesting to note what scents seem like to you

btw, wife says espresso coffee is standard for clearing your nose between sniffs when she shops perfumes, counter people usually have a jar
maybe i should bring some next time i'm there

 

[Starkicker]

I've been there and Seth is a top class gentleman. He knows his stuff, is friendly and it's an amazing place. The selection of stuff is great considering it's still relatively new - opened this past summer. I live about 4 hours away, but travel to Toronto now and then and try to visit when I can.

I've bought from IB and Joe is a nice guy with a great selection, but nothing beats being able to sniff something before deciding to buy it.

 

[jasonb8736]

i was in there alone a couple of weeks ago for exactly the same 2 brands and picked up one of each
nothing beats choosing a brand you want to try and be able to sniff test it first to zero in on your preference
it was super educational for me on a personal level too
i know my sense of smell is poor, lifelong smoker, but was very surprised to find i couldn't smell much scent from most of the brands
now know i overwhelmed my nose after the first sniff and need a few minutes before trying another scent
i picked up strop shoppe Limited Edition - 1887 with Tallow and Lanolin and qcs Esquire
the sniff test is worth the extra dollar or 2 you pay when in the store vs blindly buying online
on a side note, what i smell does not match what my wife, brother and friend smell
brother, non-smoker, said esquire smelled like wet paint to him from the tub
i get a nice rich cologne scent and my wife was in between both on this
check out the d r harris Windsor too
it worked for my nose too but will buy it after i run down my stockpile a bit
will be interesting to note what scents seem like to you

btw, wife says espresso coffee is standard for clearing your nose between sniffs when she shops perfumes, counter people usually have a jar
maybe i should bring some next time i'm there

I have the DR Harris soap and EDT and really like them both. Very classy/gentlemanly scent, IMO. Have you used the QCS and Stroppe Shoppe soaps yet? What do you think of them, if you don't mind me asking?

 

[Icarium]

I have the DR Harris soap and EDT and really like them both. Very classy/gentlemanly scent, IMO. Have you used the QCS and Stroppe Shoppe soaps yet? What do you think of them, if you don't mind me asking?

i've used the strop shoppe soap a few times, it performs great, top tier for me
same as my current favorite panna crema
only lacking vs PC's moisturized feel many hours later
SS is a soft croap like PC and Cella with a pleasant, light, barbershop scent [whatever that means to anybody else questionable with my nose]
qcs is hard, i only tried it once but my badger [or more likely operator error] wasn't up to it
it got me through a shave with little more than a slick film on my face
i shaved anyway but didn't do my end and got to DFS with the odd minor patch irritation
i just broke in a semogue 620 with about 8 lathers on an unloved soap to stop the scratcing, its ready now
will try to load the brush properly next time to get QCS to lather well for me and give it a fair test

 

[jasonb8736]

i've used the strop shoppe soap a few times, it performs great, top tier for me
same as my current favorite panna crema
only lacking vs PC's moisturized feel many hours later
SS is a soft croap like PC and Cella with a pleasant, light, barbershop scent [whatever that means to anybody else questionable with my nose]
qcs is hard, i only tried it once but my badger [or more likely operator error] wasn't up to it
it got me through a shave with little more than a slick film on my face
i shaved anyway but didn't do my end and got to DFS with the odd minor patch irritation
i just broke in a semogue 620 with about 8 lathers on an unloved soap to stop the scratcing, its ready now
will try to load the brush properly next time to get QCS to lather well for me and give it a fair test

I have some Panna Crema also. I really like it too. Good to know about the QCS.

 

[Icarium]

QCS was great today
did 150 swirls on my half shaken out semogue boar to load it up and went right to my face with it
thick protective cream that i was afraid to add water to so i went with this
very slick
even when quick rinsing between passes, the slick didn't completely come off
blade buffed quite a bit without needing to reapply too, just rubbed a wet hand over the area to find the stubble and confirm slickness
lots of rinsing when done to get to a clean skin feel
QCS was also as moisturizing as PC a few hours later too
will add some water next time but it shaved great regardless
QCS is also top tier for me now, a tiny bit above SS cos of the moisturizing feel post shave
YMMV as always

if any one is in the area, they need to get to MenEssentials to sample the scents of their chosen brands
there is no wondering if you got the best one for your nose
have some Greek food too since this area is famous for it

 

[Eutychus]

Have you ordered from MenEssentials online? I go to menessentials.com and it says the site relaunch is coming soon...

 

[jay_gord]

Have you ordered from MenEssentials online? I go to menessentials.com and it says the site relaunch is coming soon...

Try http://www.menessentials.ca/

be sure to get your 10% first purchase discount.

 

[TheDeadlyBulb]

Sorry if I'm reviving a slightly older thread, but I didn't think a new one was warranted. I just got back from my first visit to the MenEssentials store. Very nice place, easy to get to by subway, and very easy to spend money in.

Ordered online last night to use the new member discount, and got an email this morning that it was ready for pickup.
I wasn't there that long, and I'm a noob so I'm no judge, but it seemed like the guys there knew their stuff.

I'll definitely be returning. It's great to have a brick and mortar store for immediate gratification (and no shipping costs).

 

[jkajfes]

I've placed a few orders with these guys and have been very pleased with my experience. They carry some US artisan soaps like Strop Shoppe and Al's. They also have a decent selection of blades like Iridiums and Med Preps. The cost of shipping is only $5 if your order is under $50 (free if its over) which is less than most of ME's competitors.

I'm curious if any fellow canuckers, who live in the GTA, have been to the store and what their experiences have been. I think its great that there is acutally a store that you can go in to and browse around.

...end of May 2014
I'm new to wet-shaving and had some time to drop by the store today on the way home. I'm so new I have no idea what's good or bad. I'm a study in progress... They're on the north side of the Danforth east of Broadview and west of Pape. Street parking around is hit and miss but there's a parking lot on Chester ave north sort of behind the store. Cost is 1.25 per half hour... get parking for an hour because you're going to be in there for more than 1/2 hr unless your a seasoned wet-shaver who knows exactly what they want.

There is... at least to me a huge amount of shaving stuff in the store and I had a chance to talk to Seth who's very knowledgeable, along with his wife Rachael. I didn't buy a lot of stuff. I went in wanting a Parker 26C an inexpensive open comb razor as I don't own an open comb. I ended up with a Parker but it was the 24C... a little bit heavier and with a chrome handle that felt better and not as slippery in my hand as the 26C... Rachael couldn't find one in the drawer but she knew some stock had arrives but hadn't been entered into the system but she cheerfully took the time to find the razor from the new stock that had just arrived. During this time I met Seth and we had a good conversation about quite a few things... I also wanted another Badger brush and Seth helped me to make an informed decision... I'm finding the Badger silver tip I had bought a few weeks ago was a little too soft so I'm now trying a Canadian made Brock Brush... looks good haven't tried it yet. I also asked Seth about blades and he set me up with a kit of different types of blades which I can't wait to start trying. I had ordered a bunch on the internet but they have yet to arrive and judging from what brands I ordered I think I'll have better luck with the set of different blades I got at Men Essentials. It didn't seem to matter that I wasn't ordering anything expensive, everyone there went out of their way to help me and there's wasn't any pressure. Being new I had a lot of questions but they were really patient with me and explained a lot of things I didn't know. If your new like me and local to Toronto I think you should make an effort at some point to drop by Men Essentials on the Danforth. I don't think you'll be disappointed. I'll definitely visit them again.
jk