No Bay Rum!? YGBKM!!!!

I should have seen it coming a long time ago. My local Walgreens (that at one time, carried Clubman Bay Rum AND Lilac Vegetal) about a year or so ago had Bay Rum on sale. With my Clubman Bay Rum reserves getting low. I've been looking for a local source for quite a while. Even the Walgreens near work that had Clubman Bay Rum even a couple weeks ago doesn't have any. CVS, Walmart, Target, Publix, NOBODY had it locally.

I know, I know, order it on line but shipping costs were nearly as much as the AS itself and I'm trying to limit ordering on line to absolutely necessary items (i.e. TSD Soaps and good moustache wax).

So after the morning shave I went out determined to find a local source for Clubman Bay Rum and despite a whole bunch of searching, I came up empty. Disgusted and desparate I decided to swing by an old school barber in the area to see if he could provide any intel. He directed me to a local Sally's Beauty Supply. While they didn't specifically carry Clubman Bay Rum they did have Masters Bay Rum (15 ounces for $8). I'm encouraged by the reviews of Masters and initial applications have gone well. It's a bit different smell than Clubman but seems a bunch smoother and does smell nice. Best of all it's available locally. It just kinda sucks that drugstores carry nothing but goop and cartridges and the stock of "good" traditional shave gear seems to be shrinking daily. The only traditional shave stuff I can find locally is Williams and VDH Deluxe soaps, Aqua Velva (all variants), Clubman AS. Fortunately, SE and DE blades continue to be widely available (but I can't say how long that will last)

 

I've gotten the Masters Bay Rum at Sally's also. Sally's was selling out the last of their Pinaud stuff. I picked up a styptic pencil and shave cream. Also got some Jeris hair tonic without oil. If I find any promising supplies in the Pasco/Hernando area I'll let you know. There's another member near me also. Maybe we could make a large order and make the shipping worth it.

 

GI, sorry to hear about the strife in finding the Clubman Bay rum. I too, have bought my Clubman Bay rum at Walgreens and still have more than 1/2 a bottle. I may try Sallys next time I'm in town and get the Masters as you did. Good thing about our proximity to each other, is most of the stores are available to me as they are to you and vice versa. Thanks for the heads up.
Dan

 

There is a chain of stores called Drug Emporium that carries a large Pinaud selection here. Might be able to find one close to y'all?

Fuzzy

 

Walgreens carries Superior 70 Bay Rum from Puerto Rico at its stores in or near hispanic
neighborhods. You need to look in the ethnic products section rather than with the usual shaving stuff. I bought mine for $1.89. It's classic bay rum that lasts all day.

 

A) no Pinaud's stuff to be found around here, either, save the basic aftershave lotion

B) there is a Sally's within driving distance, and I too got some of the Master's Bay Rum, and I like it a lot; I also got some of the Jeris hair tonic, but all they had was with oil, but that's okay I reckon

C) hehehehe, I wonder who changed the title? :happy102

 

I looked up Drug Emporium on the ol' Google, found that the official store is now closed, but there are several independantly owned stores around by the name, including one in Shreveport...which I'll be going to next week...hmmmm....

 

I entered your zipcode into the search directory at Walgreens.com and it says that their store at U.S. Highway 19 & Trouble Creek Road, New Port Richey, FL and their store at SEC of Us 19 & Darlington, Holiday, FL both have them in stock. Might be worth a call?

 

If it makes you feel any better, I've never seen any bay rum products locally (walmart, target, walgreens, cvs, rite aid). Pinaud clubman is the only pinaud AS I've seen around here.

 

I just bought my son his first bottle of Clubman Bay Rum at Walgreens yesterday. They also had the regular Clubman A/S as well. I went online and checked the stores nearest to me and 2 out of 3 had it in stock. Went to Walgreens website and hit store finder then clicked on the nearest ones and typed in my search. May help in finding some without having to chase it down.

 

Gentlemen, I'm sorry for your travails and tribulations. Fortunately(?) for me, Bay Rum irriates the snot of my face so I don't use it. But if I were not to be able to find Pinaud Clubman, I would be in your shoes and distressed as well.

It's all a massive plot to dumb down American men to the joys of traditional wet shaving and all the goodies attached to it. It's a shame.

Good luck in your searches locally.

 

I feel your pain, 1OldGI. Our local drug stores all stopped carrying Bay Rums. Now I have to wait for my wife and/or her mother to make their annual trip up to Vermont (we live in Connecticut). There's a country store up there that sells Dominica Bay Rum. Then I have to milk it for a year. Fortunately, I like other types of aftershaves, so it's not too bad.

Good luck in your search.

 

You're probably right about the dumbing down of American men. I have to laugh to think that I was once part of the badly fooled masses. You know, "shaving is a pain", "Edge and a Mach 3 is all I'll ever need", "this sucks so bad I think I'll grow a beard" and so forth. How times have changed and quite for the better.

Hey, speaking of fragrance supplies, I noticed you are a big fan of Murray and Lanman Florida Water. I use it in the Spring and Summer. Have you gotten wise to ordering it direct from Lanman and Kemp? 12 (6 oz.) bottles can be had for $25. PM me for the link and contact information.

 

exact same experience

I mentioned it in another thread, but this is the truly appropriate place to say it: Walgreens has cut their Clubman/Pinaud stock in half. I'm in CT and they used to carry regular Clubman aftershave in 6 oz., Lilac Vegetal in 12 oz., and the same for Bay Rum. In addition to that, they sell the talc.

NOW what happened? 6 or 7 months ago I bought the last bottle of L.V. on their shelf, and they never restocked it. Someone else bought out the Bay Rum and they never restocked it. They're just down to the small bottle of regular aftershave and the talc - and the addition of one other unusual item, Clubman styling gel, the big 16 oz. jar . . .

What's the thinking here? Seems to me the talc and styling gel would both be stuff only professional barbers would want around, not your average Walgreens customer . . . I really like Clubman aftershave, but the Lilac Vegetal was nice to have around and seemed like a more practical offering as well. The Bay Rum is immensely popular and people were buying it, so why would they stop stocking that one? Retail psychology is a mystery to me.

 

My target Walgreens did pretty much the same thing. I've not seen anything but Clubman AS for the better part of a year. However, the other day, I rolled through on a lunch break and saw a lonely bottle of Bay Rum. I'm not sure if that's just one they stumbled on in the back room or if they've decided to stalk it regularly. I'm hoping the ladder of course. I'll probably be tarred and feathered and run off the site for such blaspheme but I'd rather have Bay Rum stocked regularly and do without the Clubman AS. Masters Bay Rum (available at Sally's) is at least a decent substitute but given the choice between the two, I'd probably take Clubman 9 times out of 10, even though Masters burns about 250% less. As for Lilac Vegetal, it seems to be gone for good from the Walgreens lineup. I do have a Sally's in the area that stalks Pinaud Lilac Vegetal in the smaller bottles though.

 

Yes, Masters does indeed lack the punch you in the face clove smell of Clubman Virgin Island Bay Rum. Secretly, I suspect Ogalla kicks both of their butts but that's a trial that will happen in the Fall. For now, I have a little bit of Clubman and a whole bunch of Masters to go through.

 

The Ogallala Bay Rum is about the only ASL I use anymore. It doesn't have the longevity of other aftershaves I've used, but it is very nice stuff.

 

I use the Limes and Peppercorns.
I don't find it as overpowering as Pinuad. But the one true test: My wife loves it.

 

LOL yeah I can understand that . . . I think the spicy Bay Rum smell, akin in some ways to Old Spice and like aftershaves, is generally a more widely-recognized scent. Personally it's not to my taste, but I would think it would be in Walgreen's best interest to reverse their lineup, take regular Clubman out of the rotation and replace it with Bay Rum - or just add it back in stock again. It's not like I'm in my local store enough to know, but my impression whenever I'm in the shave section is that the 6 oz. bottles of Clubman don't move - there's usually two or three always on the shelf. I can remember in the past seeing the Bay Rum come and go though. When it comes to regular Clubman aftershave, it's definitely a more unusual kind of smell, particularly nowadays, very old-fashioned. I'm 28 and I walk around wearing it, but to be honest I think I might be the only one my age in the whole state doing so. It works wonders after using regular Barbasol cream!

 

If a light bay rum interests you, try Stephans Bay Rum. Very light scented and very good. I also like Masters BR (what I call medium bodied), and on the heavier side I like Clubman BR and Dominica. For the office I lean towards the Stephans.