The Art of Shaving Acquired by Gillette

We received some big news this week. Apparently, shaving giant Gillette (owned by Proctor & Gamble) has acquired The Art of Shaving Brand. Seems like it was just yesterday back in 2007 when the two shaving companies were collaborating on TAOS’s recently released Fusion Collection. I guess that has done well for the two companies and they have decided to combine forces.

The Art of Shaving was founded back in 1996 by a husband and wife team:

Like most men, Eric had sensitive skin. One day, in the kitchen of their Manhattan apartment, Myriam decided to formulate a special oil for him to be used before shaving—a combination of botanical ingredients and pure essential oils. The next morning, Eric applied this protective pre-shave oil before shaving. From the first stroke of the razor, he could feel the blade glide smoothly across his face. A new shaving concept was born.

Eager to share their new pre-shave oil treatment—but having no money to invest-they decided to sell their car for $12,000 and use the proceeds to open a store, and during the fall of 1996, the first The Art of Shaving shop opened its doors on a side street in Manhattan.

The rest is history. Since then The Art of Shaving has grown to 36 retail outlets and over 600 retail partners. Not too shabby for a little kitchen experiment… excuse us while we go startup our blender.