Shaving supplies in SF Bay Peninsula?

Anyone know of a good place to buy shaving supplies in the San Francisco Bay Area on the Peninsula (San Mateo, Burlingame, etc.)?

I'm specifically looking for brushes but any leads for supplies in general are welcome.

General advice: I'd go with an inexpensive boar for a local purchase. You aren't going to find a high-end badger unless you go online.

My barber (see http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php?t=131593) has a few Omega brushes for sale. They aren't on display, but ask and he'll produce a few choices.

I haven't scoured the area, but you can get a few things at Sally Beauty - there's one in Redwood City. Last time I checked they had the Marvy brush (a rebranded Omega?), Pinaud Clubman, and Master bay rum.

There's a Rite Aid in Woodside Plaza (also Redwood City) that had the VdH brush and RSC cream, last time I looked.

If you really want a badger, you might also take a look at http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php?t=146397 for information about a badger brush at Target. Or there's SF: the AoS store, and Nancy Boy has a black badger brush in their starter kit.

I've found Witch Hazel at Whole Foods, and the Kiss My Face products are usually available at most supermarkets.

The Art of Shaving store in Westfield Mall (downtown SF) is great, if a little pricey. They carry several of the Merkur razors, including the 34C HD and Futur. Most high-end department stores (Bloomingdale's, etc.) carry Art of Shaving soaps, creams, starter kits, etc. The starter kit has a small brush in it, if I recall correctly.

Best of luck, and let us know what you find.

I thought of a couple more places to try, both in the Stanford mall in Palo Alto: Crabtree & Evelyn and L'Occitane. If you want to check for shaving brushes in stock, I would call ahead.

mblakele said:

General advice: I'd go with an inexpensive boar for a local purchase. You aren't going to find a high-end badger unless you go online.

My barber (see http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php?t=131593) has a few Omega brushes for sale. They aren't on display, but ask and he'll produce a few choices.

I haven't scoured the area, but you can get a few things at Sally Beauty - there's one in Redwood City. Last time I checked they had the Marvy brush (a rebranded Omega?), Pinaud Clubman, and Master bay rum.

There's a Rite Aid in Woodside Plaza (also Redwood City) that had the VdH brush and RSC cream, last time I looked.

If you really want a badger, you might also take a look at http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php?t=146397 for information about a badger brush at Target. Or there's SF: the AoS store, and Nancy Boy has a black badger brush in their starter kit.

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I agree with you...best bet for a good brush is online...the bay area is very lacking in traditional shave shops,,,the art of shaving shop in walnut creek only carries their own brand ,and prices are very high,you can really find good buys online by checking out the shopping forums here and other mens shaving forums online...

mblakele said:

I thought of a couple more places to try, both in the Stanford mall in Palo Alto: Crabtree & Evelyn and L'Occitane. If you want to check for shaving brushes in stock, I would call ahead.

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A good point. There's also a Body Shop in the mall, which has their own synthetic brush as well as other standard shaving products.

I've also started the habit of strolling through barbershops, as they sometimes tend to carry some popular 'old-time' shaving products (i.e. Proraso, Pinaud, etc.). I'll update this thread if I find any in the area.

Pop "San Francisco" in the search box, there are 2 or 3 really nice comprehensive threads covering some of the smaller local stores that sell shaving and grooming products.

winky, why not order online ?

C & E don't have a store at Stanford anymore. They used to but the closest one is now in Santa Clara I believe.

If you like straight razors, William's cutlery at Town & Country shopping center in Palo Alto sells straight, hones/wet stones and some other stuff. I think I saw some brushes there as well but I didn't look that hard.

Thanks for the PA update. You're ahead of google.

San Jose/Santa Clara at the Westfield Valley Fair mall has an odd confluence of shaving stores. I went to go get samples from the Nordstrom's yesterday and it turns out they have a L'Occitane, C & E, Bath & Body, AOS, Lush(Handmade soaps), Nordstrom's, and even the Macy's there carried shaving creams and oils.

I think they're trying to draw south bay shoppers from Stanford. It's not quite as upscale and hoity-toity, so I like it better.

Thanks for all the tips!

PIPS said:

winky, why not order online ?

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Regarding brushes, I was hoping to see a few in person before buying them.

I know this is a really old thread! But, I figure we should keep the info together rather than creating a new thread.

So I was in the Town & Country center where the above mentioned Williams Cutlery is located. They are no longer in business. I was hoping to take a look at their product, but the store is empty and no sign or notice stating they have moved! Bummer, I work across the road at Stanford. It would have been nice to find somewhere that has a selection I could get my hands on.

This led me to some internet searching and I found a Williams Cutlery and Gifts in San Jose that must have been part of the trademark. They are off of Camden Ave if you live in the area. The store looks similar inside to the Palo Alto store and seems to carry alot of the same product from what I can tell. This San Jose location is only a few minutes from my house so I stopped by and they have a decent selection. Brushes- Parker, Muhle, maybe vulfix or col. conk? Seemed like badger and boar! They also had a few col. conk soaps, most of the Merkur razor line and blades, and a display of straights and a strop or two. If you live close, it's worth stopping by. I bought a puck of conk and a sharpening stone for a few pocket knives.


Also, I was in Monterey last weekend and walked into Hellams Tobacco shop in the downtown area. Great place! The owner is super friendly and obviously loves cigars! He also has a small display of shaving goods. A few merkurs, some col. conk pucks, and a few brushes. I could only tell the brand of one of the brushes because of the box. I believe it was a vulfix or conk. The others that were in the case looked hand made and were priced anywhere from 185-320 dollars. Again, if you are in the area, stop by the shop.

I'll try and report back as find other places with product!

Thanks for this tip! I live not too far and knew nothing of this place. The closet place I was aware of is AoS in Valley Fair which is ridiculously over-priced and lacking in products.
I'll definitely check out Williams in the coming days.

jpmess said:

I know this is a really old thread! But, I figure we should keep the info together rather than creating a new thread.

So I was in the Town & Country center where the above mentioned Williams Cutlery is located. They are no longer in business. I was hoping to take a look at their product, but the store is empty and no sign or notice stating they have moved! Bummer, I work across the road at Stanford. It would have been nice to find somewhere that has a selection I could get my hands on.

This led me to some internet searching and I found a Williams Cutlery and Gifts in San Jose that must have been part of the trademark. They are off of Camden Ave if you live in the area. The store looks similar inside to the Palo Alto store and seems to carry alot of the same product from what I can tell. This San Jose location is only a few minutes from my house so I stopped by and they have a decent selection. Brushes- Parker, Muhle, maybe vulfix or col. conk? Seemed like badger and boar! They also had a few col. conk soaps, most of the Merkur razor line and blades, and a display of straights and a strop or two. If you live close, it's worth stopping by. I bought a puck of conk and a sharpening stone for a few pocket knives.


Also, I was in Monterey last weekend and walked into Hellams Tobacco shop in the downtown area. Great place! The owner is super friendly and obviously loves cigars! He also has a small display of shaving goods. A few merkurs, some col. conk pucks, and a few brushes. I could only tell the brand of one of the brushes because of the box. I believe it was a vulfix or conk. The others that were in the case looked hand made and were priced anywhere from 185-320 dollars. Again, if you are in the area, stop by the shop.

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CVS pharmacy on Lawrence Expressway and Prospect has williams mug soap for $1.77 a puck. Just thought I'd let anyone in the San Jose area know, in case they were interested.

I was in the bed bath and beyond off Almaden expressway in San jose today. Its one of the largest I've ever been in. It had about ten rows of cosmetics/toiletries. As always I strolled down the shaving aisle. I was quite surprised! Clubman, vegetal, 4711 and a few others. The only shave soap looked like surrey on the label but I believe VDH is the same thing? Correct me if I'm wrong. SE and DE blades. As I said, I was quite surprised to see this much stocked shaving goods. If you are in the area or have one of these larger bed bath and beyonds near you, take a stroll down the shaving aisle.

Go to Herman's Barber Supply:

525 Auzerais Ave, San Jose, CA
(408) 292-5405

They have all the serious shaving stuff you'll need. It's a great place to hang out too. Since I found Herman's, I never bother with the mall or drug stores. I know this sounds like an ad, but once you go to this place, you'll understand. It's much more than just a store.