Absolutely Criminal

[Invicta]

The criminal bit is P&G in cahoots with the large chain stores and making obscene profits out cartridges and associated products. If it wasn't for the internet they would have a strangle hold.
For the De user, we are very limited in local stores supply the products so shopping is via the internet.
Anyway, I now buy products I never knew existed so perhaps I should thank P&G.

 

[Krodor]

As XuDan said, yes, traditional wetshaving is cheaper than otherwise. Period. The fact that people spend more than necessary is their choice and has nothing at all to do with the shaving itself.

People are willing to spend on convenience, just look at the grocery store. I can make bread/tortillas/salsa/cake/ice cream/stuffing/whatever waaay cheaper, but I most often buy them pre-made. I'd compare it that way.

 

[maxman]

As XuDan said, yes, traditional wetshaving is cheaper than otherwise. Period. The fact that people spend more than necessary is their choice and has nothing at all to do with the shaving itself.

People are willing to spend on convenience, just look at the grocery store. I can make bread/tortillas/salsa/cake/ice cream/stuffing/whatever waaay cheaper, but I most often buy them pre-made. I'd compare it that way.

This is how I look at it.
Yes carts are expensive, but if they didn't make a profit (a huge profit) on them they wouldn't be making them.
For every one of us purchasing DE gear there are 100 buying carts.

Yes you can save a ton of money DE shaving, but as Krodor just said, you can save money making your own bread.
For a lot of people, the convenience outweighs the cost.

The best deal in shaving if you ask me is the one time cost for a brush and then a box of Palmolive or Arko or whatever.
You'll never have to buy soap again. It will last you forever. I don't think I've finished an Arko stick yet.

 

[Franziskaner]

Originally posted by Mad Man

Save money....no.

Enjoy shaving more than ever....oh, yeah!​

^This. And every once in a while, without seeming to do anything different, I absolutely NAIL a comfortable, easy DFS, and if that doesn't reinforce the enjoyment then what does.........

 

[lt114]

My shaving costs have sky rocketed since I began wet shaving. With that said, I have been able to divert purchases for my much more expensive hobbies into shaving gear. The net effect is that I am saving money, and the enjoyment I get from this is so well worth the extra cost involved.
With all of that said, you can certainly save money wet shaving over cart/get shaving. You just have to buy wisely and keep your ADs in check.

 

[lt114]

Well said Marc.

This is how I look at it.
Yes carts are expensive, but if they didn't make a profit (a huge profit) on them they wouldn't be making them.
For every one of us purchasing DE gear there are 100 buying carts.

Yes you can save a ton of money DE shaving, but as Krodor just said, you can save money making your own bread.
For a lot of people, the convenience outweighs the cost.

The best deal in shaving if you ask me is the one time cost for a brush and then a box of Palmolive or Arko or whatever.
You'll never have to buy soap again. It will last you forever. I don't think I've finished an Arko stick yet.

 

[dimbulb71]

Does anyone get anoyed of when you think about the millions of peple wasting money on the latest and greatest shaving gel/foam in a can?

Only last year did discover DE shaving and how inexpensive the soap/cream can be.
I hate to think how much money i've wasted on Nivea Sensitive Skin goop and the Gillete Mach 10 (or whatever is out next) carts.

http://groceries.asda.com/asda-esto...e=Products&headerVersion=v1&_requestid=241782

- £3.99

For £4 you could afford to buy a nice tub of cream that wil last a year.
For £4 you could buy 8 Palmolive/Erasmic sticks.
For £4 you could buy 3 tubes of Real Shaving Co Cream!

I felt that way when I walked in to an Art of Shaving store the other day in Salt Lake City...I do save more money, I just don't get the premium stuff and the sales guy even commented on how good my shave looked...I told him I liked to use Arko and an EJ89, neither of which they sell. I did figure out why they are so pricey though turns out they are a part of Essential Oils, I never knew but it makes sense to me now.

 

[TripleG]

Great discussion, truly enjoying it. The homemade bread vs. convenient but more expensive store bought bread is a great analogy.

I'm new, trying out different combinations but expecting to find a "perfect" combination at some point soon. In this exploratory phase, my costs are currently a bit more expensive than cartridge/gel shaving but they will drop once I find my groove. The great thing about B&B is that one can try new items and if they are not suitable, they can be sold or traded back to the community.

I'm in XuDan's mindset. It's a necessary task but I want to do the best job possible at the cheapest price possible - and don't mind paying a bit more to make it enjoyable.

 

[Maxime D.]

When I started this, it wasnt only about saving money, it was about having a fresh blade when I please. I was tired of overextending the life of my carts because of the price, tired of dull blades and tired of the pulling sensation on my face. I don't sorry for people because they use goo and fusions, I feel sorry for them because they miss something so comfortable and relaxing.

 

[creamgravy]

Absolutely criminal? Find out how much Czech and Speake shaving soap costs...

For £4 you could buy 8 Erasmic sticks.

I'd take a can of Fusion ProGlide over 8 Erasmic sticks every day of the week.
Buy a can in the sale, ditto Nivea Sensitive. They both good products and last a long time, the ProGlide even contains lubricants like teflon! Shame the packaging sucks, I hate those cans.

 

[_JP_]

I'm not at all concerned about what others spend for cartridges and cans of shaving cream. That money keeps a lot of people employed, which in the long run helps out the economy.

 

[Superdoo]

I've probably spent slightly more since since wet shaving about 5 years ago. While I definitely don't go overboard with my purchases and choosing to just build my stash over time, budgeting about $15-30 a month. At first I bought higher end creams, soaps and colognes, with the thought that higher price = better. Recently I've found some of the inexpensive shaving products like Razorock and Proraso to be some of my favorites.

For me, instead of buying a lot of stuff, it's about purchasing the products that I will use and enjoy. The biggest draw for me at the beginning was the skin care aspect. Less razor bumps, rashes and wrinkles as I get older is worth a few bucks a month.

 

[XuDan]

I'd take a can of Fusion ProGlide over 8 Erasmic sticks every day of the week.
Buy a can in the sale, ditto Nivea Sensitive. They both good products and last a long time, the ProGlide even contains lubricants like teflon! Shame the packaging sucks, I hate those cans.

Why do I feel trolled? I'm hoping that it's just advanced sarcasm.

Anyways, to the topic, the criminal part isn't about the prices P&G charges - it is (as previously stated) the near monopoly they have and the ignorance of people that other options exist. Part of this is that we have become a convenience culture who doesn't want to put in any amount of work for anything. They want to squirt goop (not carrying what kind of crap is in them) on their face and be done in two minutes, quality of shave and skin health be damned. It is a by product of quantity over quality that has overtaken America. I'll take the quality shave over the fast one everyday even if the blades cost more than the carts and the creams/soaps were 20 times more expensive. Fortunately for us, they aren't and my face, mind and wallet are happier than ever.

 

[Manco]

Some folk have more dollars than sense

How much have you saved with DE shaving? I understand someone complaining that they could get better value but saying that people have too much money when usually they spend more on DE shaving is a rather pathetic argument.

 

[Timo]

I felt that way when I walked in to an Art of Shaving store the other day in Salt Lake City...I do save more money, I just don't get the premium stuff and the sales guy even commented on how good my shave looked...I told him I liked to use Arko and an EJ89, neither of which they sell. I did figure out why they are so pricey though turns out they are a part of Essential Oils, I never knew but it makes sense to me now.

Art of Shaving is owned by P & G who also own Fusion and Gillette. Now you know why they push the vibrating, singing, jolting, 26 blade (soon to be) fusion.

 

[HoosierTrooper]

Does anyone get anoyed of when you think about the millions of peple wasting money on the latest and greatest shaving gel/foam in a can?

Only last year did discover DE shaving and how inexpensive the soap/cream can be.
I hate to think how much money i've wasted on Nivea Sensitive Skin goop and the Gillete Mach 10 (or whatever is out next) carts.

http://groceries.asda.com/asda-esto...e=Products&headerVersion=v1&_requestid=241782

- £3.99

For £4 you could afford to buy a nice tub of cream that wil last a year.
For £4 you could buy 8 Palmolive/Erasmic sticks.
For £4 you could buy 3 tubes of Real Shaving Co Cream!

Annoyed at what others spend their money on? Not in the least, it's their money. Every razor and blade that every company has made in the last 100+ years has been the latest and greatest for the era they were conceived in, and they were just as expensive as today's products are, if not more so. As an example, the Gillette Fat Boy, actually called the 195, was sold for a suggested retail price of $1.95 in 1960, that is roughly $15 in today's dollars. It was expensive then, the Fusion is expensive now.

New shaving products have always been expensive and Gillette has always been the top dog. Absolutely nothing has changed.

 

[HoosierTrooper]

Here's an ad for Barbasol shave cream from 1944. Note the prices of 25, 50 and 75 cents. That's roughly $3.25, $6.50 and $9.75 today. That cream was very expensive in 1944, no different than today's prices.

And here's an ad from Christmas, 1929. Fifty double edge blades for $5, that's $67 in today's money.

 

[RondeB]

If they are happy with carts and a can then good for them. Personally, I am glad that I switched. However since I started my costs have not gone down. I do enjoy it more now, though.

 

[oc_in_fw]

Why do I feel trolled? I'm hoping that it's just advanced sarcasm.
.

From what I remember, Erasmic went to crap when they re-formulated..

 

[Bumgardner]

It is all part of capitalism. The cartridge manufactures have a product that is adequate and have prime product placement. They also have the connivence thing working for them. They have made shaving just another task and that came with some drawbacks. Many people are willing to live with those drawbacks and pay the price for the connivence.

I think I am one of the few people on the forum that has actually saved money by going to traditional wet shaving. I bought a GEM 1912 off of the forum for like $8.00, and ordered 100 Ted Pella blades for a little of nothing $25, and bought Really Right Shave cream on sale and with a coupon for under $3.00. That stuff got me started for under $40. I have picked up other shave soaps and creams as presents from friends and family. I would have spent way more than that using a cartridge and canned goo...