These are likely the only brand available in a drugstore here in my home province. That's $1.10 CDN / blade. Even Feathers, which most would agree are relatively expensive by blade standards, are about half the price.
I guess they get used to pricing razor blades based on cart prices and it just comes out that way. I have noticed they are typically pretty high in the drug stores that happen to carry them around here as well. Since not all the stores carry DE blades, the ones that do get to charge a high price. They know that anybody looking to buy from them is likely in need and with few other options.
Wilkinson Sword 5-pack $2.49 per pack http://www.italianbarber.com/razor-blades?sort&filter_id=118 That is why people buy online nowadays.
The thing is that it does not need to be that way. I bought a similar pack of Wilkinson blades for a little over $3 at an Indian grocery store. CVS carries ASR-made store brand blades for $7.00 for a pack of 10. Seventy cents per blade is not dirt cheap, but is still reasonable. That is especially true given that the blades last a long time, and come in a dispenser with a used blade bank built in.
I will try to buy things local if I can, but not like this. Around here, I have three choices I have seen for blades. Walmart carries them, but a small stock, and they are often out. Their prices aren't great. The local CVS has them for prices similar as noted above. Walgreens in the next town also has them, but these are at prices similar to what Spud noted. The high prices of cart blade packs drove me to alternatives, the first one being online thru one of the monthly subscription services. I then came to DE. This is much cheaper, but unfortunately only if you buy online.
I appreciate the buy local philosophy, however, even Personna Med Preps are only $.32/blade; and I thought that price was exorbitant.
This is why I never let my blade inventory drop below 100. Local pharmacies already have 30 years worth of my money spent on overpriced crappy blades, cartridges and canned foam. Never again!
I saw those blades at Shoppers Drug Mart. Sometimes they have sales, so keep an eye for a price drop. I missed the $7 sale on Proraso tubes and tubs last year. Keeping an eye out for the next one. I wish SDM carried the red and blue Proraso. I would be on top of that.
What sucks is that Walmart used to carry 10 count Wilkinson blades for $1.76 not that long ago. Used to be a good emergency source but not anymore
I used to be a "buy local" guy. Now locally, all we have are the Big Box stores so the point is moo. When a guy can buy superlative quality blades online from $ 0.08 to $0.30 per, walgreens can go buh bye.
I personally find it kind of funny that wet shaving enthusiasts are so willing to drop money on razors, soaps, and creams, but have major hesitiation over the retail price of DE blades. Before we get upset about the retail price of DE blades, we should consider that most of us are used to paying wholesale prices (or less) for blades. A store with overhead costs that doesn't specialize in shaving gear is not going to be able to match those prices. Period. I am glad to see that some stores are carrying them, but in reality, there is a pretty small market for them in the retail world. Those of us that use them regularly have purchased them online in bulk, and don't need the ones from the store. Those that don't know about the avaliblity online are still excited because they are less than cartridges. Stepping off my soap box, just don't know if everyone thinks about the costs associatied with a store carrying a product, and why they don't like to cater to us with blades.
DE Blades probably make up less than .01% of a pharmacy's total sales (probably even less!) They have no reason to discount them. They are looking for the occasional sale with a profit margin that is enormous. I still buy my shampoo and toothpaste at the brick and mortar drug store, but I'll stick with online prices for my shaving gear.
55¢(US) per blade for Israel Personna at grocery here. I used them in January for a 30day Rule. Never again unless in a pinch.
Except for some after shave balm I get everything online. Amazon for Feather blades out of Thailand, and some shave cream. The rest is from the bay, vintage brushes, Old Spice, razors, witch hazel etc. and Whipped Dog and TGN for new brushes and knots. There is nothing local here, and I'm close to Houston. If you do find something the prices are outrageous.
My experience (30 years) in working with big box stores, and smaller retail stores, as a supplier to them as both a distributor and a manufacturer, this is what occurs. Anything in a retail environment, (not just shaving items), divide the retail price listed by 3 and that is generally the stores acquisition cost for an item. That is the standard markup if they are buying from a distributor. If they are buying direct from the manufacturer it can range from 3 to 6x's. This is how Costco, SAMs and huge box stores, Lowe's, Home Depot, etc offer prices in many cases lower than other stores. They are buying in bulk in many cases entire shipping containers or truckloads worth of a single item. Bulk purchases equal lower costs, Which translates lower costs to consumer but because you save .50 or a dollar on an item from big store they are still making better than normal margin because their acquisition costs is lower. You save money, they make more to simplify for purpose of discussion. In retail, you are paying for the convenience of getting the item immediately, the store has carrying cost to cover. In some instances the above guidelines are not followed, but rarely. Many times the stores sets their retail target price point, and the supplier of the parts must meet their guidelines to provide those items at a cost to achieve not only the stores acquisition point for the store to meet their margin, but the supplier marks the items up to meet their own margin targets as well. What the Internet has done is eliminate in many cases several steps in the supply chain which reduces the costs associated, hence we can buy items cheaper online.
