3 ms·

Your argument breaks down as soon as there are economies of scale. Gillette can probably buy the same quality as Jeremy's at a better price, because they order

Your argument breaks down as soon as there are economies of scale. Gillette can probably buy the same quality as Jeremy's at a better price, because they order larger bulk shipments. That means the new niche DTC companies will most likely be a worse value to consumers than the established big brands. Also, the article links to a study which found DTC to be 10% more expensive than traditional retail.

logifail 4y ago
> That means the new niche DTC companies will most likely be a worse value to consumers than the established big brands Umm, I bought a no-name (but Gillette-compatible!) razor last week while travelling due to having left my usual kit at home. Having used the no-name one for a week, I can no longer see any reason to pay the extra for a razor brand ever again.
- taeric 4y ago
  As someone that has not changed razor blades in 5ish years, I'll warn that you probably can't generalize how well a razor will work for all skin and hair types. I'm thankful that I don't have issues with mine, but I also don't recommend others change. Granted, I haven't looked at prices in a long time. I am mostly assuming not insane costs.
  - logifail 4y ago
    > Granted, I haven't looked at prices in a long time. I am mostly assuming not insane costs I'm not sure what "insane" would mean in this contect, but replacement blades for the no-name Gillette clone I bought are half the price of original Gillette ones. My week using the former showed that, for me at least, the performance of the latter really doesn't justify its price. YMMV.
    - taeric 4y ago
      I haven't bought blades in 5 years; so I don't have a gauge. I was underlining the YMMV for folks. I remember back when I was a lurker. :)
cushychicken 4y ago
Lol I made absolutely no argument about product quality. All I point out is the underlying reason for a glut in companies selling stuff through social media advertising.
scarab92 4y ago
Economies of scale diminish quickly when overheads are low, which the tooling costs for making razors will be. It's likely that even small companies are selling enough that these costs amortise to near zero.
tomjen3 4y ago
That is not a bad theory, but I can't tell you the difference when I try using one of their shavers vs the store brand ones I usually get. I also cannot tell the difference between that and just buying safety razor blades, though there is a huge advantage (for me) in the pivoting head.

logifail 4y ago

> That means the new niche DTC companies will most likely be a worse value to consumers than the established big brands Umm, I bought a no-name (but Gillette-compatible!) razor last week while travelling due to having left my usual kit at home. Having used the no-name one for a week, I can no longer see any reason to pay the extra for a razor brand ever again.

taeric 4y ago
As someone that has not changed razor blades in 5ish years, I'll warn that you probably can't generalize how well a razor will work for all skin and hair types. I'm thankful that I don't have issues with mine, but I also don't recommend others change. Granted, I haven't looked at prices in a long time. I am mostly assuming not insane costs.
- logifail 4y ago
  > Granted, I haven't looked at prices in a long time. I am mostly assuming not insane costs I'm not sure what "insane" would mean in this contect, but replacement blades for the no-name Gillette clone I bought are half the price of original Gillette ones. My week using the former showed that, for me at least, the performance of the latter really doesn't justify its price. YMMV.
  - taeric 4y ago
    I haven't bought blades in 5 years; so I don't have a gauge. I was underlining the YMMV for folks. I remember back when I was a lurker. :)

cushychicken 4y ago

Lol I made absolutely no argument about product quality. All I point out is the underlying reason for a glut in companies selling stuff through social media advertising.

scarab92 4y ago

Economies of scale diminish quickly when overheads are low, which the tooling costs for making razors will be. It's likely that even small companies are selling enough that these costs amortise to near zero.

tomjen3 4y ago

That is not a bad theory, but I can't tell you the difference when I try using one of their shavers vs the store brand ones I usually get. I also cannot tell the difference between that and just buying safety razor blades, though there is a huge advantage (for me) in the pivoting head.