I am proud to announce that I have taken yet another step towards conserving the resources I use to one of the most basic personal maintenance we all perform. Shaving.

Yes, that is right, my friend, shaving can be environmentally-friendly. Not only that, you can find out how making a simple switch in your shaving habits can add $13,602.81 to your net worth. But first, let me go into the specifics.

Safety Razors

By reducing the amount of waste created by disposable razors and cartridges, you are also contributing to the environment in several ways.

• Reduce your dependency on petroleum byproducts
• Reduce your consumption of limited fossil fuel
• Reduce ozone depletion

I made the switch from plastic to metal last week with Merkur Heavy Duty Safety Razor. Not only was I pleasantly surprised at how smooth my shave was, it was also a comfortable experience. I was a little concerned because I had never used one before but now after feeling the smooth safety bar on the razor gliding down my face, I have to admit it was even better than Gillette’s Mach razors.

King Gillette was a man with a great vision to create disposable razors but in the end, it turns out his vision may harm the planet. After all, isn’t that’s what entrepreneurship is about? To gain a profit by creating a product to serve the masses? That’s what Gillette did but we have to forgive him for not having the information we do have today regarding our environmental resources.

Shaving Cream

For a long time, I used aerosol shaving cream until I found a suitable alternative which is made from organic materials and “bottled” in recyclable plastic. I am still trying out a few brands to find the ones I like the most. Every person is different but the point is this, shaving cream is always going to be “money down the drain”, literally.

If you want to do your part to help conserve the planet’s resources, it is always worth trying non-aerosol shaving cream, especially organic ones. There are hundreds of them to choose from, check them out on Amazon, your neighborhood organic grocery store, even the organic section of your favorite supermarket. The times are a-changing and your buying power is more important than ever.

And the best part is when you are finished with your non-aerosol supply, you can toss it into the recycle bin.

And now, how you can add $12,136.69 to your net worth by shaving…

Here is the part everyone is waiting for. Not only would you be reducing the resources needed to shave, you would also be spending considerably less because safety razors are not very complex and for the most part has been perfected so it would be next to impossible to improve upon them. Have you noticed in the last 10 years, Gillette has been coming out with Mach 1, Mach 2, Mach 3, and NOW Mach 4 razors???

This should be telling you that their product was not perfect in the first place to begin with and will never be perfect until they create a “disposable” razor that is equal to the design, sturdiness, and lasting quality of safety razors. In the meantime, why not save your money until they do?

I was able to pull the prices I paid for the disposable razor and cartridges and compare that with the prices I paid for my Merkur Double Edge Safety Razor Blades 3-Pack through Amazon. As you can see, I paid a little more for the safety razor but $5.00 less for the blades. Now to clear up the air regarding the supply, the disposable came with a 20 cartridge supply which lasted me about 4 to 6 decent shaves but I still had to purchase a second 20 cartridge supply. I bought the disposable razor/cartridges in March 2007 so I essentially used up 40 cartridges in 13 months.

According to other safety razor users, a single blade can last 10 shaves, and be sharpened again for a few more shaves. The safety razor I bought only came with one blade so I ordered 3 packs of 10 blades (30 blades total).

If a disposable cartridge last 4 good shaves, then 5 cartridges would give you 20 shaves. With 2 razor blades, you can achieve the same number of shaves for a quite bit less money. This is basically a ratio of 2.5 cartridges to 1 blade.

Now the math begins…

If one were to shave for 40 years, buying a 20 cartridge pack refill each year for their disposable razor, may or may not be enough but for this purpose, we will presume it is enough. This means you would have to spend $20 each year for 40 years. That doesn’t sound like a lot does it?

Notice, not only would you be saving time running to the store each time you have to buy more blades, you would also be saving $560.40 over 40 years with safety razor blade refills. (Remember, we are using a ratio of 2.5 cartridges to 1 blade here.) What if Gillette comes out with a Mach 5, or even Mach 21? The disposable razor may no longer be appropriate for the new blades so you may have to shell out some more for a new disposable razor.

I took the liberty of using the Simple Savings Calculator to see how much you could add to your net worth if you put away $560.40 at an annual interest of 8 percent for 40 years. The answer is $13,602 dollars and 81 cents.

That’s not bad when you think about it. That’s money in your pocket, not the shareholders of Gillette or Bic or any other disposable razor companies. Play with the Simple Savings Calculator if you think you will be shaving for 50 years or if you think you can generate a different rate of return, such as 10% or 12% and you could end up adding even more to your net worth.

TheLocoMono can hear all the primates chattering and hooting for you now!!!

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BTW, I have to thank Trent who wrote this article about a year ago when I first discovered personal finance blogging and thought about the value of safety razor.

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