A lot of folks have pointed out that there is likely no conspiracy among the companies to attempt to screw women out of money. They're not identical products,

A lot of folks have pointed out that there is likely no conspiracy among the companies to attempt to screw women out of money. They're not identical products, there's economies of scale at work, etc, however, I believe there's a few places that marketing has specifically been targeted at women for products that such targeting is not happening (at least not successfully/to the scale of) for men: Shampoo, Conditioners, and Soap. Most men don't care enough about these things (outside of shaving needs, which have outrageous products similarly targeting men), but enough women do care enough for them to be victims of marketing and wasted money. These products principal feature is the advertising. "Natural" and "Essential Oils" and other common "features" mean exactly nothing (or not at all what folks think they mean). And many use pricing for the explicit purpose of implying quality. Obviously a $90 shampoo beats a $5 store brand. I freaked out when I found out a shampoo my wife loved was $40! So on one of my shopping adventures, I purchased several different brands of conditioner, shampoo and body wash (up to $30.00 w/coupon and no ingredients she was sensitive to), and generic 1 oz. travel bottles. I filled each and we switched them weekly for a few months. Her $40.00 one was in the middle of the rotation and made it "one shower" -- she hated it[1]. In each case the pick was in the bottom 25% for price. Body Wash: Axe for Men O_o, Shampoo: Kirkland (Costco), Conditioner: a Suave product (Suave was a back-up in all three, consequently -- I buy all at once when coupons/store discounts match up, so we needed a few). [1] I have never told her that was "her brand" -- she would have taken that as me calling her dumb/gullible when the reality is that these companies spend large sums of money to specifically target her -- and there's just no good reason to be a dick.