So I've been shaving with a valet auto strop for the past 2 months. It gives a great shave. As many of you know this is a single edge razor. I bought a cheap DE razor and blew through the 5 blades that came with it. I was told to head to shoppers drug Mart for DE blades. They had no selection. All they have is wilkinson sword blades for 15.99 a pack. I had to rub my eyes to make sure I seen that correctly. The same blades go for around 5$ online. Why this incredible mark up? It seems a bit ridiculous. I could see them marking it up a few bucks, but a whole 10$. I figure its to keep the price even with cartridges. Anyway, I'm wondering if there is anywhere to buy DE blades in store in Ottawa Ontario that has a better price? Of not I may just invest in a pack of 100 blades from amazon. I hate waiting though and by the time I get them, I'll have a fully blown bushman beard.
That's a bit crazy. For that price you could get about 200 Astra SP's online. If you don't know what blades you prefer, get a blade sampler. I see the TSD one is back in stock and has an excellent selection for less than that pack of Wilkies. Four of my favorite blades are in that sampler, I wish I had started with it.
$15.99 for a pack of 100? If it is for a pack of 10, then it is horribly overpriced. That is over double the going rate most brick-and-mortar stores charge for packs of 10 blades, and seven times what online stores charge. A five-blade pack is: $2.00 - $2.35 at Bullgoose Shaving $2.39 - $3.79 at Shoebox Shaveshop $2.45 at Best Grooming & Shaving Tools Italian Barber is in Canada and should have similar pricing. If you buy in quantity, the savings are even greater. All of the above are easy to order from and have outstanding customer service.
I would say stick with a vendor online. Shaver X has given you a good list. One more I will add is Razorbladesandmore.com That is where I get most of my stuff.
Am I reading this right? If you like those blades, head to WalMart. Cheap there. If not, stick to the internets I've settled down to the Astra SP's, which you can get very cheap on Amazon.
I also know about those ridiculous Wilky prices at the Shoppers. I recently picked up a nice little stash of Wilkys at about on line prices from one of the smaller retailers in my area. I suggest shop around locally at small stores that might be carrying DE blades, do some on line price research and see if you can get a deal. There is of course, always the option of on line buying..just beware of high shipping costs if you are outside the US...
I just looked at his Walmart stores in Ottawa and they even want almost $12.00 a pack. Good grief. Outrageous.
Aaaack, shame on me, I left off razorbladesandmore.com! Thanks for adding that, Ryan. Waldoe, I am not sure what the shipping costs are from the US to Canada. If they are too high, then Fendrihan would be another Canadian online option. While online wetshaving stores are great, it is sometimes convenient to go to the local brick-and-mortar store. If you run out of blades, for example, and your online order has not arrived yet. But $12-$16 per pack?!? Yowsers, that is nuts! Most US stores have blades at prices that are reasonably competitive with online outlets. Suggestions to check local grocery stores, pharmacies, etc. might bear some fruit. If you do find reasonably priced blades, please do post the store names here. That way your fellow Canadians can also benefit from your search. Best of luck and happy shaving!
$12 a pack? You might as well buy cartridges. At least you're supposed to get ripped off by paying in the double digits for those.
Yeah, 10 pack for 15.99. ridiculous. I would never pay that much for blades again. That's one of the reasons I switched from cartridges. I'm definitely going to go on a search around town when I have the time for it. I have ordered a sampler pack in the mean time. I found a great seller on amazon good prices and free shipping.....Thanks for all of the links and advice. Bplatoon, The carts for a 4 or 5 pack of say hydro 5 were right around the same price..... wow just checked the American Wal-mart page, 3 packs of 10 wilkinsons for $5.28.
My theory is that the B&M stores have higher prices for DE blades because it's a slow moving product. The money they spend to keep that product in inventory is going to be tied up longer so something is added to the selling price to compensate. Fast moving items can have a lower mark up because of volume of sales.
I was going to send you a few packs but found out it would cost me about $35.00 to ship $10 worth of blades. Crazy!
Yes.....check it out. I was going to ship them in a padded envelope but if it is greater than 1/4 thick the price goes sky high. USPS, what a wonderful organization....NOT!
Wow 35$ that's insane! I appreciate the thought though. I got a bunch of feather single edge blades for my autostrop a couple months ago from the UK was like 1.50$ for shipping. Come to think of it it was actually 1.50£ but still a heck of a lot better than 35$
I just looked at Gillette Trac II cartridges in my local Walgreens - ten cartridge packs are $15 for the Trac II and $20 for the Trac II Plus! Even the store brand blades are $9.00 per pack.
