Shaving Armaggeddon?

[Cyanshine]

Greetings!
I read on a blog a somewhat older post that we have to fear eclipse of DE products because of some companies' policies regarding cartridge razors. As a newb I want to ask you:
Have you experienced this as a problem? Has there been a rise in prices, difficulty in getting supplies or disappearance of products?
Do we have to fear that in the near future and should we stock up?
I guess I know the answers but I wanna read them from experienced folks...
Cheers!

 

[JerryM]

In my relatively new experience - No.

 

[mgoldmann]

Looking at the internet, it seems that anything you may want is available from multiple vendors.
Looking at the local stores, some do a better job than others of stocking wet shaving supplies.
There is one grocery store chain that I refuse to do business with because they no longer carry DE blades, but there are at least 5 other stores within a 30 minute drive of me that carry DE blades.

 

[BlackBard]

The Shavepocalypse is a real concern to some members. Better stock up before it's too late.

 

[mblakele]

In the USA at least, the Shavepocalypse happened back in the 1990s when good DE products slipped off of store shelves. Since then we have been digging ourselves out of the rubble and building a new world, with plenty of help from cheap global trade. Right now things seem to be getting better. We are seeing new software and new hardware from small-scale producers, which is a most welcome development.

Things could slide downhill again if the remaining producers of good SE and DE blades closed their doors. But some would switch to straight razors, others to the simplest possible cartridges, and shaving would go on.

 

[JerryM]

The Shavepocalypse is a real concern to some members. Better stock up before it's too late.

Shavepocalpse??!! I hadn't considered that!

I'm off to buy some Mike's!!! Thanks for the heads up!

 

[Mick]

I have enough DE and SE blades to last me several lifetimes.

I don't sweat the small stuff

 

[mvk]

It seems that things are getting more plentiful and easier to obtain each month!!!!

 

[tmurzz]

What is the catalyst exactly?

 

[Cyanshine]

Thanks for the replies so far!
@tmurzz apparently Gillette marketing a single blade cartridge (The Gillette Guard) without microfins, lubrastrips or other gimmicks at a competitive price to emerging markets like India.

 

[Taproot]

The big fear about this exploded when Gillette seemed like it was going to close its Russian Blade plant and the guard went out and eliminated 50% of the shaving market share that DE's used to occupy in India within a single year. I figure that developing nations will end up being predominantly carts as they stop being developing. They'll also probably end up with a niche society of people who prefer DE blades and Razors. The ability to market internationally on the internet with no on-site distribution points (brick and mortar stores) means that eventually there will be a fairly stagnant distribution of artisan shavers (of which I consider B&B) and people buying the latest and 'greatest' carts- globally.
I'm not terribly worried about DE's- although Injectors and SE's seem at risk to me by virtue of the fact that there are limited blade manufacturers and have a very small userbase.

 

[TGilly]

I think this is of concern in The United States. They don't sell razors or blades in the big chain stores around me like CVS or wallgreens, there is an abundance of the cartridges though. However, with the internet market I'm not worried, going to stock up my arsenal full of feathers soon. From what I've seen here on B&B seems like the rest of the world embraces traditional wet shaving, especially The UK.

 

[blzrfn]

Demand drives the market, even if producers try to corner it. If consumer continue to purchase DE blades, brushes, etc. then somebody will find a way to sell them. Sure your favorite product may get discontinued and it is up to you to monitor that scenario. But as to the doomsday no supplies available, its all bullshark.

 

[JerryM]

I interpreted shavepocalypse as an alternative to AD.

While I now have some Mike's and QCS en route ( ), I'm one beard away from actually caring.

 

[crfcom]

For no reason that you may understand, let alone articulate, the stuff you need to shave may not always be available. So, if you don't have a lot of shaving stuff saved up, you might find yourself without the stuff you need to shave someday. Don't be without the stuff you need to shave. Buy a lot of shaving stuff and put it in boxes. Put the boxes in places where no one can find them. Then when shavepocolypse comes, and no one has any shaving stuff, you might be able to find some of the shaving stuff you bought when there was a lot of it around. If there's more of it than you need, you might be able to sell it for a lot of food, or socks, because there's also likely to be sockpocolypse and foodpocolypse and, in a "perfect storm" manner, they could all converge into a single, massive event and, there you'll be, with a bunch of shaving stuff to trade. The world would be your oyster. Also, you would be clean-shaven.

 

[mjakopa]

Lacking a proper razor store here in Slovenia, all we have are your run-of-the mill drugstores. No safety razors and only Gillette blue and Wilkinson blades. Everything else is cartridge. I am forced to purchase all of my soaps, creams and gear from abroad.

 

[DevinLT1966]

I wouldn't worry about it. New SE razors haven't been made in significant amounts for, oh lets say a long time and you can still find SE blades. Considering how many new DE razors that are made every year, I think we are a long way off from everything disappearing.

That being said, just relax and let your inner AD kick in just to be safe.

Excuse me, I need to order a 100 pack of Astras to stock my survival shelter

 

[Jussi]

In Finland the DE-razors are currently a rarity. Only a couple of small shops (including ours) sells them. Blades are available in one market chain, but the price is ridiculous (~$8 for 5 Gillette Platinums). Trying to re-introduce the product is challenging, but I believe it can be done - although, never in a large scale. Thus, I live in a post-shavecalypse country and stock my reserves accordingly. And enjoy the feeling of being one of the rare individuals here that actually can achieve the BBS.

 

[theretroshave]

Stocking up on something you like is always a good idea. You never know when it will be gone, and you'll either have a stockpile to possibly sell, or at least be prepared to go on enjoying your treasure. Just look at all the poor suckers who had to stockpile their beloved Twinkies... RIP Twinkies, BTW. Seriously though- who here freaked out when Polsilver Iridiums suddenly disappeared (which in fact are apparently not so out of production). Anyway, be prepared. I think I'm going to order some Iridiums now.

 

[Mad Man]

Stocking up...? ha! Try living Down Under and getting ANY kind of high-alcohol content after shave (specifically bay rum) delivered. It's a joke!