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King Camp Gillette (January 6, 1855 – July 9, 1932) was an American businessman, popularly known as the inventor of the safety razor. more...

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While Gillette did improve the design of the safety razor (patent US775134), his true invention was an inexpensive, high profit-margin stamped steel disposable blade and a unique business model. This beat out competitors and became the most popular razor of its time.

Biography

Born in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin and raised in Chicago, Illinois, King Camp Gillette's family was devastated by the Great Chicago Fire of 1871.

While working as a traveling salesman for the Crown Cork and Seal Company (the first major disposable product) to support his family in the 1890s, Gillette hit upon an idea. Earlier razor blades needed continuous sharpening, becoming worn out quickly and making them expensive. He realized that a profit could be made by selling a safety razor at a reduced price and then making a profit margin on the inexpensive disposable blades. He developed a blade made out of very thin sheet-steel. Once the blade became dull, it was discarded and replaced by a new one, using the same holder. This has been called the Razor and blades business model, and is an example of a "loss leader".

Safety razors had first been developed in the mid-1800s, but still used a forged blade. In the 1870s, the Kampfe Brothers introduced a type of razor () along these lines. Gillette improved these earlier designs of the safety razor and also introduced his true innovation of high profit-margin stamped steel blades (along with his unique business model). Gillette's razor retailed for a substantial $5 (almost $134 in 2006 dollars) — half the average workingman's weekly pay — yet it sold by the millions.

The most difficult part of the development was making the blades, as cheap thin steel was very difficult to work with and very difficult to sharpen. This accounts for the long delay between the initial idea and the first production.

In order to apply his idea, Gillette co-founded the Gillette Safety Razor Company on September 28, 1901 under the name of American Safety Razor Company. The company's name was changed in July 1902 to Gillette Safety Razor Company. Gillette obtained a trademark registration (0056921) for his portrait and signature on the packaging. Production began in 1903 when he sold a total of 51 razors and 168 blades. The following year, 90,884 razors and 123,648 blades were sold, thanks in part to Gillette's low prices, automated manufacturing techniques, and good advertising. By 1908 the corporation had established manufacturing facilities in the United States, Canada, England, France and Germany. Razor sales reached 450,000 units and blade sales exceeded 70 million units in 1915. In 1918, when the U.S. entered World War I, the company provided all American soldiers with a field razor set, paid for by the government.

Read more at Wikipedia.org