After several years of toying with the idea, King of Shaves has launched its first razor, the Azor, onto the male grooming market.
Will King, founder of King of Shaves and ceo of parent company KMI, says that the time was right to launch into hardware, after nearly five years of careful planning and creative brainstorming. “The inspiration for the Azor came from the bendy head of the toothbrush I was brushing my teeth with one evening. I thought that it was such a simple concept but one that worked and so wanted to replicate this with our first ever razor. This provides a positive push action on the skin rather than a flimsy flex, so to speak!”
The four-blade Azor, which will be priced at £4.99 for a handle and three blades, will launch onto the market on June 23 in Sainsbury’s and July 21 in Boots. The product’s bendy head technology leads to a closer shave, according to King, and the Azor’s handle is inspired by the curvature of a yacht thanks to King’s passion for sailing. This year the Azor will only be available in black and white but next year a variety of colours will be launched.
Keeping the price point low was a major factor for King: “We are number two in the market behind Gillette but we pride ourselves on giving the customer value for money with all our products and didn’t see why this should be different with our first razor. The cost of shaving just seems to be rocketing so we wanted to redress the balance. It has always been my ethos that if you can make something for a fair cost, you should.”
KMI has committed £35m to the Azor marketing campaign over the next five years, with the first major UK promotion, starting this autumn.