No shadow of doubt ever exists in the mind of a man who uses a –

Gillette Safety Razor.

Well, at least that was the claim in this 1905 advertisement for the new Gillette safety razor; the one we today would call the Old Type. Which was then the very newest type, and also the only type.

1905 advertisement from the Literary Digest.

In 1905 you would be an early adopter, and like most early adopters you would pay for the privilege. While the ad don’t mention how much you would have to fork over for an ideal holiday gift (either the standard silver-plate or the gold plated special set), they do mention how much you would have to pay for a dozen new blades.

One dollar.

Which may not sound like much for a claimed 240 to 480 shaves, but… inflation can be harsh. One dollar in 1905 is roughly the same as 36 dollars today (33€, 28£, or 395 Norwegian kroner). So not cheap.

But at least there would be no shadow of doubt in the mind of the shaver. But today I would very much doubt the mind of a man who opts to use the latest Gillette cartridge razor, at least if he has had the option of trying a proper safety razor.

As a side note, I like that they point out out their patent (#775,134) and what they claim it covers.

  • waldenMA
    3·
    1 month ago

    I’ve heard that DE blades used to be similarly expensive. Gillette is often given credit for the strategy of “sell something inexpensive that requires constant refills”, although I’ve seen that claim debunked (I don’t have any references, though). The blades were also made of carbon steel so you had to keep them from rusting, unlike today’s stainless steel blades. DE blade sharpeners exist because there used to be a market for keeping the blades sharp as long as possible.