I think I found a place to buy soaps and such in Miami, but that 30+ mile trip - with traffic and parking - will be less worth it than driving 50 miles to go get something for some of you westerners. I've googled and called a few beauty supply shops, but can't really get a handle on if anyone north of Ft Lauderdale carries, say, selections of razors, soaps, mugs (better yet, shaving scuttles), and etc. I read somewhere else to look for a specific tobacco shop, but even those don't appear to have their own websites or store locators. Thanks for any help.
It's slim pickings around here, unfortunately. The hardware isn't so easy to find, and the software is barely better. I'm not sure how far north or south of Fort Lauderdale you are or wish to venture, but here's a few that I've found. Art of Shaving: Probably your best bet, though it's pricey. It's in the Aventura Mall, and they carry a good selection of everything. I've stopped in a few times to browse, but haven't bought anything yet. They have a shave chair setup, but I have yet to see anyone manning it. I'm curious if they do a straight razor shave or if they just use one of their overpriced Gillette Fusion handles with a crummy cartridge. In terms of shaving supplies though, that may be the option with the most product in store. Crabtree and Evelyn: There's one in the Boca Town Center, one in the new shopping center in Pembroke Pines, and one in the Aventura Mall. They carry some shave products, razors, and brushes. I've been to the Pembroke shop, and while it's nice, the people there don't seem to know much about the shave products. If you use shaving creams in tubes, do yourself a favor and pick up a Shave Tube Key while you're there. I don't know how I got by without one. So simple, yet so effective. Bath and Body Works: Really, the only thing you'll find there is the C.O. Bigelow stuff, but definitely give it a try. The shaving cream is repackaged Proraso and it's excellent. I haven't tired the after shave stuff yet. Miles and Lyle: I haven't been here yet, but I hear great things. It's not really a shave shop, since they only offer a few products, but they do a real life, honest to goodness straight razor shave. I also understand that the owners and people working there are incredibly nice and of excellent help. They may be able to steer you in an unknown direction. Another thing to check, though I can't verify yet, is cutlery and knife shops. I've heard through different people that some of them carry Merkur products. I know there used to be one in one of the malls around here, but I can't remember which, and it's probably long gone. But if you stumble across a place, it might cough up something. Hope that helps.
Thanks for the reply! The list you supplied was just about all I came up with, too. I know I've seen some razors in cutlery shops, but that's about it as far as i can recall. Now that I ordered one, that part of the 'supplies' is going to hopefully be covered for a while anyway. As I mentioned, I have read that some tobacco shops may carry soaps and creams, but the one chain I read about doesn't seem to be in this area - and as far as I can tell, the ones IN this area don't seem to have websites that appear in google (at least not to the best of my search skills) - which, in this day and age, I am surprised about (even if they only sold tobacco products ... I mean, nearly every company has a website these days...). My truck gets about 14 MPG on a good day, and traffic would lower even that... so despite hours and hours of online and telephone searching for local brick-n-mortar shops that I could buy some item from my first list of wants from, I just hit the 'buy from Amazon.com' button for my entire list and was pretty much done with it. Still, for replenishing supplies I'm hoping something pops up that we're missing, lol. I'll be moving to Pompano Beach in a short while, so I'll check that area, too. I honestly get to a real 'mall' on the average of LESS than once a year, and I'd like to keep it that way. I do know this - of the few real barber shops I have visited here in the area, each does carry a very minimal amount of what I always guessed were some shaving / aftershave products - but i never had the inspiration to investigate further until now. Another place we could be asking for local intel would be the barber schools in the area. It's almost a given that at least a few students or teachers might have a penchant for the shaving side of their art and, thus, know what's available, where, in the area. :happy088
Check out Shoe Box Shave Shop for online shopping. They ship right out of northern Dade County, so their cheapest shipping rates should reach you in about two days. Their prices are quite good, and they've got some nice things in their selection that I haven't found too many other places. They're exceptional to deal with and very professional. Edited to add: If you do a lot of shopping through Amazon, you may want to invest in the Prime membership. It's a bit of a hit at $80/year, but you get free 2 day shipping on Prime eligible items, and $3.99 on overnight shipping. I spend enough at Amazon that the savings in shipping offset the cost within a few months, especially on big ticket over night items.
I spent 18 years in Lauderdale near the Pompano line (65th street off of 18th ave.). As bad as it sounds, I can't remember any streets down there but there was a tobacco shop I visited on Commercial (I think) in a small shopping center. I was into cigars then so don't remember a thing about shaving stuff, but you may can find it in the phone book. Good luck. I miss the old place but things have changed so much since I left high school (Cardinal Gibbons grad) that it's depressing to return home now...
