The Art of Shaving store.

[cafro]

So on my trip to Boston today I stopped by TAOS store on newberry street... Neat store but not overly impressed... However great customer service... They feel like a fancy Gillette vendor... 90% of the razors on the shelf are "fancy" fusions, machs ect. Same blades, fancy handle... Although, I would like to get a shave from them... And I did grab a tube of their sandlewood...

 

[gdgeorge]

It's the same parent compamy as Gillette.

 

[Ron Scott]

Have visited a few but not be tempted to buy. Seems like a retail thing more than a shave thing to me.

 

[dfoulk]

Their soaps, creams, and after shaves are nice and the only thing I buy in the store. They are slightly overpriced but are of a high quality. If you get on their mailing list they have 20% off sales twice a year that make the products priced appropriately.

With some knowledge from here you can find items as good or better for less money.

Everything else in the store don't walk, run away from. Nobody needs a $90 plastic Gillette Fusion handle.

 

[Cynomys]

I have used AOS soaps and they are great. In fact, I have a couple of pucks in storage, only waiting to finish one of the soaps/creams in my current rotation before breaking them out. But for the price, I would put my money into Castle Forbes creams. Or just a whole bunch of much lower priced, quality soaps and creams.

 

[cafro]

I'm not surprised to hear that they are parented by Gillette. I had to ask about the cost of the Murker 34c in the case... I just had to laugh they wanted 70 bucks for it! That is nearly double what I paid for mine...

I do like their sandalwood soap, tired it this AM. Along with the sample of pre-shave oil. But I won't be using the pre-shave oil again. It gummed up my brush, razor, and my sink was like tacky hair filled super glue.

 

[weizemanner]

You are only supposed to use a couple drops of pre shave oil. In fact the little box of sample packets is enough for three full shaves for me.

 

[BRITD]

90% of the razors on the shelf are "fancy" fusions, machs ect. Same blades, fancy handle... Although, I would like to get a shave from them

What did you expect, Mach3 disposables?

Nobody needs a $90 plastic Gillette Fusion handle.

Nobody "NEEDS" to shave, period!

I had to ask about the cost of the Murker 34c in the case... I just had to laugh they wanted 70 bucks for it! That is nearly double what I paid for mine...

What local Brick & Mortar (B&M) store did you buy your $35 Merkur from?
Its scandalous that the movie theatre charges $12 for a movie when you could wait and rent the DVD for less or that Starbucks charges $4 for a coffee when you can drink that liquid mud at your employers kitchen for free, or Disneyworld charges $100 park entrance fee when the local park is free.

All this AOS bashing is old.

 

[N8Julo43]

All this AOS bashing is old.

+1, Just enjoy the cool store focused around wet-shaving. I happen to love their soaps. They last forever and lather with ease. Their aftershave balm is great too. You don't have to buy anything that you know you can find a better price on. That's true with any retailer you walk in to. I don't get why guys go in there just to test the salesman's knowledge or to laugh at a price. Every time I have been in an AOS store I've had good conversations and the sales rep openly admitted he didn't know some of the things I mentioned. Sure there are high prices on some items and inexperienced sales employees in a few of their locations, but to say that this isn't common in a retail environment would be a lie. Like I said, just enjoy that there are stores like this to look around in while your wife drags you around the mall.

 

[vaplanman]

...
What local Brick & Mortar (B&M) store did you buy your $35 Merkur from?

It is nice to be able to handle merchandise before a purchase, even if it is one specific brand. They are also the initiation into wet shaving for a good many people.

...
All this AOS bashing is old.

Nothing can be "old" when we have a continuous stream of people joining the throng. To make that statement disregards information that is brand new to someone else. It's similar to saying that, "No pressure" is old advice and need not be repeated.

 

[cafro]

I really haven't read any bashing of TAOS so I'm sorry for brining it up.

Like I said, I do like their soap (and bought some) even though it is over priced. And the store was a novel experience.

What I was expecting was a little more traditional of a store than what I saw. They don't even sell DE blades, or at least that is what the sales lady said, yet they sell $199 straights.

I got my Merkur for 36.50, and iy wasn't not local. So I get it, its going to cost more local, but double the price, common.

 

[N8Julo43]

I really haven't read any bashing of TAOS so I'm sorry for brining it up.

Like I said, I do like their soap (and bought some) even though it is over priced. And the store was a novel experience.

What I was expecting was a little more traditional of a store than what I saw. They don't even sell DE blades, or at least that is what the sales lady said, yet they sell $199 straights.

I got my Merkur for 36.50, and iy wasn't not local. So I get it, its going to cost more local, but double the price, common.

I apologize, we were probably bringing more background conversation from other threads in to yours specifically. I hope the soap works out for you! For the quality and longevity, $30 a puck becomes more and more reasonable the more you use it. Even more so if you get your hands on one of their discontinued tallow formulations, IMHO. Some people over on the 3017 thread have gotten 4-5 months of daily shaves out of a single puck. That is pretty great.

 

[kyledre]

I visited my local AoS last week. Grabbed a sample box and used all three products over next couple shaves.
The good: Pre shave oil, shave cream, AS balm
The bad: Prices, selection, VERY limited employee knowledge
I'll go back, but only for specific product. Otherwise, too gimmicky.

 

[sarimento1]

So on my trip to Boston today I stopped by TAOS store on newberry street... Neat store but not overly impressed... However great customer service... They feel like a fancy Gillette vendor... 90% of the razors on the shelf are "fancy" fusions, machs ect. Same blades, fancy handle... Although, I would like to get a shave from them... And I did grab a tube of their sandlewood...

did you use the discount that was running over the weekend??

 

[mdevine]

I've started on my second pucks of both Art of Shaving Sandalwood and Lavender tallow shave soaps. Of the thirty soaps I've tried, a mixture of artisan and big name vendors, the AoS is the clearly the best. I ended up with well over 100 shaves with each puck. I only hope the new formulation is as good as the tallow.

 

[August West]

 

[Prof. Moriarty]

 

[Corey]

I was able to pick up a pack of Gillette Platinums to try out. They were high on price, but by the time shipping was factored into any of the other places that carry them, I'd be paying about the same. It's also nice to get some instant gratification by walking in and picking up a pack. I wouldn't make it a regular thing, but the sales associate was nice, I got my blades with no fuss, and also some free samples to try out. It serves a purpose, even if it isn't generally my purpose.

 

[craniac24]

But I won't be using the pre-shave oil again. It gummed up my brush, razor, and my sink was like tacky hair filled super glue.

If that happened, you used WAY too much.

 

[BRITD]

Nothing can be "old" when we have a continuous stream of people joining the throng. To make that statement disregards information that is brand new to someone else.

What information from the well established throng, that B&M retailers charge more than online retailers?
Yeah OK, thanks, we got it!