Yup! That’s the claim anyway, of Gillette’s new advertising campaign aimed to counter the perception (probably due to naughty DE shavers like Leisureguy and myself) that Fusion blades at $3.50 a crack aren’t good value for money. In these troubled economic times Gillette worries that its billion dollar a year brand franchise may become eroded by penny pinching consumers looking to shave a few shekels from their budget. You can read about the campaign on the cosmetics industry web site, here.
According to Gillette, a man need spend only $1.00 per week on Fusion blades…less than what he spends on a cup of coffee every day. If we tentatively accept that statement it means that a Fusion blade at an average price of $3.50, should last for about one month’s worth of daily shaving. This would actually make shaving with a Fusion cheaper than shaving with a quality DE blade (Feather, Merkur, Astra, etc.) which normally costs about $0.40 and lasts for about three shaves. Doing the math very quickly shows that for 30 shaves we would need 10 DE blades with a total value of $4.00….50¢ more than shaving with a Fusion. Some DE blades are substantially more than $0.40 and many users (myself included) change them after only 1-2 shaves (the price of constantly seeking perfection!). Mind you, I am fortunate in that my preferred blade is the Treet Blue Special “Batman” blade (term coined by Leisureguy) which only costs 12¢, so I think I’m still ahead of the cost game vs. a Fusion.
Nevertheless, an interesting preemptive strike by Gillette. The question remains: Can you actually get a month’s worth of really good shaves with a Fusion, or will the telltale “indicator strip” at the top tell you that its time to change before those 30 days are up? And even more importantly, do you really like the Fusion shave vs. the DE, because each produces a very different feeling based on their mode of action – the Fusion relies on beard hysteresis while the DE actually shaves the beard and a very fine layer of skin cells producing an exfoliating effect (much desired by anti-aging aficionados).
Maybe Gillette will also change its slogan to “The Cheapest a Man Can Get!”. 
Comrade Shaveletariat’s, tired of getting gouged when buying razors? Get a jar and fill it with a half inch of mineral oil and keep your razor in it when not in use. This increases the life of the blade exponentially. The reason is because razors dull because of corrosion, NOT wear. Go figure, because the same collection of companies who make blades also make creams and gels, and the first ingredients in all of them are corrosive acids. Tell your friends at your next shaving party, so that we may once and for all vanquish the monopoly of the capitalist oppressor razor barons. Vive le partisan! For more details, just follow the link:
http://gnomerroamer.wordpress.com/2008/12/16/the-gnome-puts-fifty-bucks-in-your-pocket/
By: Jesse on December 17, 2008
at 4:50 pm