The Fanciest New Razors That You Can Actually Afford

Ever wonder why standard shaving supplies are so expensive and yet so...cheap looking? The founders of Harry's shaving supplies, Jeff Raider (formerly of Warby Parker) and Andy Katz-Mayfield thought the same thing. The pair has launched an intrepid (and, so far, extremely successful) company with the goal of completely revamping the industry, similar to how Warby Parker revolutionized the way consumers shop for eyeglasses.

According to Katz-Mayfield, the idea came from being a genuinely frustrated consumer himself. "I walked into a drugstore in 2011 and had an experience that I think most guys can relate to. I waited 10 minutes for someone to unlock the case where the razors were held and bought a four-pack of razor blades and some shaving cream. When I walked out and looked in my bag, I saw a receipt for over $25 for products from brands that didn’t speak to me as a customer, and quite frankly, made me feel uncomfortable." He called up his good friend Jeff, and the pair got to work on creating Harry's, a shaving brand with fairly priced, stylish, high-quality shaving products.

The biggest hurdle that the company faced in the early months of its execution was arguably the most important: Sourcing affordable razor blades that are of the highest quality is a very challenging gig indeed. "Razor blades are extremely difficult to make," explains Raider. "The magic is in the way you grind steel so that it's stable and sharp." The company finally found a solution in raising over $120 million to purchase a 93-year-old factory named Feintechnik, which has been manufacturing some of the finest razor blades in the world since 1920.

To complement these blades, the pair dreamed up the perfect cartridge, which has five blades and a rubber flex film that contours to the face for a super-comfortable shave. Of course, when we heard that, we couldn't help but wonder, why haven't these guys brought their genius to the ladies? "We've thought a lot about creating products for women," says Katz-Mayfield. "We actually hear that women love shaving with Harry's, too."

Well, fellas, consider this your official commission. Ladies have, ahem, unique shaving challenges as well, and we don't love paying through the nose for pink plastic lameness. Let us know when Harry's Girlfriend is launching — because you know our gams want to get in on that artisanal German-blade action, too.

Harry's The Truman Set, $15, available at Harry's.