Gillette cartridges are expensive!

[StewB]

Many of you already know this, but as I write this, the Gillette "proglide" cartridges are about $5 USD each.

At the Walmart where I took this picture they have these behind locked glass.

Like I said, many of you already know this, but I hadn't looked at these for a while, and I guess I didn't realize just how expensive they are.

The Schick Hydro carts are pricey too, but these are 2/3 more!

Just...wow.

That's all.

StewB

 

[Mr. Shavington]

It is shocking, isn’t it? I’m surprised more people don’t move to DE razors. Maybe they aren’t aware of the option, or they assume DE razors are obsolete and inferior. After all, there has been no advertising for DE razors for decades now.

The razor blade industry has done quite a job, from offering a new, convenient alternative product to bamboozling the public into thinking this is the only product - and so they have to pay whatever the blade manufacturers wish to charge. The blade manufacturers effectively created a new monopoly, just by monopolising the advertising, even though the product itself was inferior. And it was in every blade manufacturer’s interest to go along with it because they could make far more profit if they too pretended you could only shave with five blades at a time.

It is sad to think that actually the old, DE razor technology gives a better shave for just a fraction of the cost, and nobody knows.

I have said before, I think we are all fortunate that some major nations like India never adopted cartridge razors. If they had, I’m sure there would be no DE razors at all now.

 

[StewB]

I was genuinely taken aback by this price. In my case it was ignorance that there is a better way (I just started DE shaving this year). I always thought that carts replaced DE razors because they were superior; I have found that this understanding has some truth to it (carts are a lot less dependent on the user's skill), but this "ease of use" has its own (and in the case of Gillette "proglide", substantial!) cost.

Understood that those afflicted with RAD can make it more expensive, but IMO that's a hobbyist's choice. One can get a perfectly serviceable DE shave (minimum cart quality or better) with a $15 USD Van Der Hagen TTO and some inexpensive shaving cream and call it a day.

 

[@ngel]

I haven't walk thru a personal care aisle in probably 5 years! Don't care to look at what they even offer any more nor the price, in fact, I have enough resources that I haven't had the need to buy anything shaving related in probably more than 3 years or so now, and if I do, is just a click away online!

 

[APBinNCA]

How many shaves per cart are people pushing these now?

 

[StewB]

How many shaves per cart are people pushing these now?

Good question, actually. I would think that the high cost is causing people to use these carts for much longer than they should be (I think this was the case for me before I used a DE razor). I have found that since DE shaving the "acne" problem I thought I had previously has virtually disappeared, which suggests to me that my issues were really due to ingrown hairs.

 

[linty1]

Completely agree. I buy the bulk lots of blades on the bay. Seem to work ok for me? The two big lots I have now are fine (a big box of 100 excels, and another 100 box of mach 3s, but I've definately purchased smaller lots of "gillette" blades online that were quite tuggy that were not worth the "deal".

 

[@ngel]

How many shaves per cart are people pushing these now?

My brother in law shaves everyday, sometimes twice a day if he has evening meetings and he can push one of those puppies for an entire month, but he is one of those people that just grabs the thing and shaves while he showers, no shaving cream, no aftershave, just drags that thing all over his face without even looking and done, quite impressive if you ask me, and I don't even remember him ever complaining about ingrowns or irritation, then there is the rest of us

 

[CarloMNL]

How many shaves per cart are people pushing these now?

One of the reasons why DE got me curious was that a cart would only last me 2 to 3 shaves. For a guy who needs to shave daily, this adds up quickly.

 

[StewB]

One of the reasons why DE got me curious was that a cart would only last me 2 to 3 shaves. For a guy who needs to shave daily, this adds up quickly.

That's true for me as well, although the Hydro carts I was buying lasted longer than that (maybe 15 shaves or so).

 

[Mitzie]

This was the reason I switched to the Wilkinson Sword/Schick Protector 3 -with no regrets and better maneuverability

 

[APBinNCA]

My brother in law shaves everyday, sometimes twice a day if he has evening meetings and he can push one of those puppies for an entire month, but he is one of those people that just grabs the thing and shaves while he showers, no shaving cream, no aftershave, just drags that thing all over his face without even looking and done, quite impressive if you ask me, and I don't even remember him ever complaining about ingrowns or irritation, then there is the rest of us

That is exactly what I expected to hear!

One of the reasons why DE got me curious was that a cart would only last me 2 to 3 shaves. For a guy who needs to shave daily, this adds up quickly.

That is much more in line with what somebody who doesn't hate their face would do! But I suspect about a week is average even if it needs to be changed.

The reason I brought this up, if not obvious, is this is usually the first line of defence for current cartridge users. "If the cart cost $2, I change it every week. If it cost $5, I change it whenever, two or three maybe. Carts aren't expensive!"

I fully admit that there are a LOT of people on here buying at least $20 worth of blades per month purely for hoarding. That's without getting into any other items. Like everything, our brains work on short time frames. Long term, somebody on here can just stop buying and be done for literally decades.

 

[Jim99]

The price of cartridges are just way to high to justify the purchase. I moved over to DEs over 7 years ago just for that reason and I wish I made that move sooner.

 

[Medivh]

I no longer shave with cartridges, but if I go on a vacation somewhere I would definitely buy a disposable BIC for 30-40 cents instead of brining any of my razors and being worried if I lose them or if someone steals them. Besides, they won't allow me to carry any blades in my cabin/hand luggage.

About the high prices, most people are primarily using cartridges or electric shavers and as we all know things tend to get more expensive with time instead of getting cheaper, so when you do the math it all makes sense.

 

[DrStrange]

Ever since the beginning,
the whole entire point of the existence of Gillette razors
has been to create a demand for their disposable blades.

IANMTU

 

[Rob67]

How many shaves per cart are people pushing these now?

I used to get about 3 weeks out of a cartridge.

The trouble is if you buy a £20 razor and blade from the supermarket and use it like you would with a cartridge razor you'd use it once and throw it in the bin. If you did your homework you would see that there is learning curve which can involve financial investment, irritation and blood. 95% of people would not bother.

 

[HoosierTrooper]

Ever since the beginning,
the whole entire point of the existence of Gillette razors
has been to create a demand for their disposable blades.

IANMTU

Exactly, and they were also expensive back in the “good old days”.

 

[slimshavy]

I was buying the generic version of the Sensor Excel cartridges, but even those were running $1 each. I was angry with only getting four shaves out of each: the first would cut me, the second and third would be good, and then the fourth would cut me again.

I always shaved with a hard soap and brush, so that hasn't changed. Picked up some vintage razors for peanuts and now I'm still getting four shaves per blade, but the blades only cost me 12 cents each.

 

[samhain666]

Yup, this is why we do this and fool ouraelves we are using cheaper alternative and greener too while collecing dozebs of artisanal soft soaps in plastic tubs

 

[StewB]

Well, I don't collect soaps (and if I did, I would recycle the plastic tubs they came in).

If I decide to buy more safety razors, yes, that increases my cost, but the increased cost is not a requirement (by "requirement" I mean "I have to pay this in order to shave") or due to vendor lock-in but rather a user preference. Those who like carts are also welcome to their preference, of course. I was just aghast at the price, that's all ($5 USD per cart? Wow...).