Being a resident of the Lehigh Valley, there are many stores I personally shop at for my essentials. Those stores include Target, Walmart, Weis, Giant, Wegmans, etc. I recently went to Wegmans because I had an errand to run and it was the closest store nearby. I needed razors, and being a woman, I go through razors probably about every month or so because I have to shave my legs, armpits, etc. Needless to say, I went to the “hygiene” section and was picking out my razors when I meandered to the men's razors. Why there are different types of products for different genders is a conversation for another day. However, I noticed that a “women's” packet of four razors was $6.99 while a men’s packet of 12 razors was $3.99. I was confused at first why there was such a big price difference and I didn’t want to jump to any “feminist” conclusions. So naturally, I looked at the materials, where the razors were from, and any ingredients that could be possibly causing the inequality. I found none. I found this to be quite annoying. Why, why was the “women’s” razor almost twice the price for less of the same product?
Razors between men and women are very similar, they have the same handle however the razor blade is different. Although this is true, why is the price difference so massive? Why would two or three blades make that much of a difference?
This is a screenshot from Target.com of Target’s brand of “women’s” razors. There are 5 in this packet and it is $10.39. That’s about $2.09 per razor.
This is another screenshot from Target.com but of “men’s” Target brand razors. There are 10 in this packet and it is $6.69. That is about $0.67 per razor.
When looking at the item details of these two products that are basically the same. I only found minor differences that should not cause a price difference of $1.42. Take into consideration that this is just data from Target — there are also other brands and companies with the same inequalities and discrepancies.
In society, it is sometimes considered sexy for a man to have scruff or a full blown beard. Facial hair is what they would use a razor for and it’s not essential for their appearance. On the other hand, it is considered repulsive for women to have leg, armpit, or bikini-area hair. Women are looked down upon if they don’t shave. For example, this past Tuesday I was with some of my friends and my legs were resting on one of my friends. My ankles were visible and you could see my leg hair because I hadn’t shaved for about a week and this friend of mine said “Ew that’s gross!!! Why didn’t you shave?!!” My response to that was rolling my eyes and just moving my legs, but you can see how evident shaving is in American culture.
In conclusion, from this research I have discovered I am going to shave one leg with a men’s razor for a whole month twice a week and shave the other leg with a women’s razor for the same amount of time. I will track my findings and update you all next month.
Let us end the inequality one small step at a time.
