14 posts tagged “shaving”

It was a long, yet hugely rewarding day yesterday. 

Following a couple of months of work with our Shaving Bond advisors, PR firm and team at King of Shaves, The Times was the broadsheet newspaper first to break our 'Shaving Bond' announcement, along with a nigh on full page lead story in the hugely popular 'The Sun'.  I had carried out 20 interviews in the days running up to the announcement, with a wide range of journalists, and the overall reception to the idea was overwhelmingly positive:  "Why hasn't this done before - it's a great way to connect your product with your consumers", "Genius idea, how did you come up with the idea for it?", "Exactly what King of Shaves would do - why go through a (distrusted) middleman to raise money, when you can get great publicity and raise cash in one fell swoop" were just a few of the responses to our bond issue.

Media interviews with the BBC World Service, Radio 4 and Radio 5 followed from the London Stock Exchange, as well as BBC 3 Counties Radio, before I moved onto slots with Sky News and CNBC (this with Quentin Wilson - the motoring journalist & ex Top Gear presenter - who turned out to be a King of Shaves fan).

But, the £5m question is, I guess, will the Shaving Bond be successful?  Will up to 5,000 individuals subscribe for it?  And if they don't (as we have said if we don't raise over £500,000 we will return money to investors), what does that mean?

Taking the first point - will it be successful first.  I have absolutely No Idea.  With anything new, untested, untried and without precedent, of course you hope it will work - otherwise you would never have done it, but there are no guarantees.  Does this bother me?  Not at all.  The hugely positive coverage we garnered yesterday for King of Shaves, itself worth hundreds of thousands of pounds - as a brand prepared to connect with its consumers - to offer them not just a 'great shave' but a 'great save' too - was something our competition will struggle to get their heads around.  As one wag emailed me, "If Gillette offered a Shaving Bond, it'd COST you money!"  Which made me laugh out loud, and tweet it out...  Marketing websites, such as Brand Republic picked up on it saying "King taking on Banks" (we're not, actually - we have a great relationship with HSBC, our principal banker) and took the brand into a whole new era of discussion - the blog posts starting off with "this smells of snake oil" but this negative comment being rapidly overturned by posts which were universally positive regarding the initiative (we sell shave oil, not snake oil, anyway).

Money & financial investment sites, such as This Is Money and My Finances picked up on it positively too, calling out the rewards and risks in a balanced way.  As I said on the Radio 5 interview, "The only certain thing in the world at the moment is uncertainty - and the fact men's beards will keep on growing" and I know The King of Shaves Company is fine in our financial position to not only take in money, but to spend it too - overcoming our biggest competitor - lack of awareness, and people sticking with the perceived 'best a man can get'.

Via PRWeb.com, the release went international overnight, and I've had a deluge of international press enquiries about the idea - whether other companies can do it - will this be a new way for companies, products, or brands that consumers trust to raise money, cutting out the (currently not much liked) middleman/fund provider - be they an investment bank or private equity.  Who knows - but what I do know is this morning, I've had an email from a fellow Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Winner asking to be put in touch with our advisors, as this is something "they want to do" and another, from the head of a brand that considered the idea, but shelved it due to issues of complexity and cost (um, well - we dealt with these - and they weren't that complex, or costly!).

My main reason for issuing our Shaving Bond, with its 6% per annum interest coupon, a limited edition 'mirror finish' Shaving Bond certificate to hang in your bathroom, and exclusive, not available to anyone else, product (which some people are applying for bonds alone, to get their hands on!!!) is to recruit up to 5,000 brand enthusiasts - brand advocates - brand ambassadors - guys & girls who we affectionately call 'Loyal Subjects' and have them in our brand DNA - when they're out doing the weekly shop, maybe can make KoS look nice on the supermarket shelves, and if someone is looking at buying a shaving product, maybe - just maybe - they'll recommend King of Shaves.

The money we're raising to spend on marketing is incremental to the money we've ALREADY raised, and money we have access to via our funding facilities.  As I pointed out in interviews, we're repeatedly approached from a structural investment perspective by private equity houses, investment banks - and often, large global companies.

But for the moment, I am happy keeping King of Shaves doing what it does best - growing strongly, shaving people better daily, for increasingly lower cost (our Azor handles AND cartridges are currently on promotion at Tesco & Sainsbury - something our competitors will shirk from doing) and working towards globalising the brand.  With market launches in the USA, Brazil & South Africa happening in the next few months, just a year after we launched our Azor, my team and I are of the view that if we can deliver on our growth targets, product innovations and more, and work over the next 3-5 years to take King of Shaves to a Genuine global grooming challenger using our own resources and innovations, then we will.

As 'The Pirate Inside' book starts:"It's more fun being a Pirate, than joining the Navy" (Steve Jobs, Apple) and concludes: "Beware the person who believes in what he's doing".

Faster, higher, stronger.  We're here to shave the world better, forever.

And, of course, give our customers some savings too :-)

Keep up to date with our Shaving Bond developments by following me on Twitter.

I'm so excited, and I just can't hide it! 

Top international publisher, Headline are publishing a book on 'The King of Shaves Story' in September.  I was approached by James Wills, of book agent Watson, Little last June after he read a profile piece on King of Shaves and I in Shortlist Magazine, the deal was done late last year, and between January and April I was typing hard, writing the manuscript. 

Having had the final meeting with Headline executives today, including Jonathan Moseley, I've been told I can let the good news out!  I'll be posting snippets about the book over the next few months and weeks time (with Headline's permission of course), but they have told me it's a wizard read, maybe not Harry Potter level, but I've put as much passion and creativity into it as I do into King of Shaves.

'The King of Shaves Story' is the working title - it hasn't got a title yet (any ideas? - I set KoS up in the last recession) - but rest assured, as soon as I can tell you more about it, I will.  All updates will be tweeted out here and I'll be setting up a little micro-site too, along with a whole host of other exciting stuff - watch this space!

Many thanks to the dozens of you who've emailed me saying how much you're looking forward to reading it, and to my followers on Twitter who've tweeted and re-tweeted the good news out. 

Roll on September!

Since January, I've been working hard on a project I'll be able to announce later today!  It's really exciting for King of Shaves, and for me too!  Watch this space... ;-)  MoneyShavingExpert.com will also be live shortly... :-)))

A picture tells a story of 1,000 words. 

Check this out   Gillette Fusion at £2 per handle.  That's pretty close to cost of goods for Gillette.  So, it's either from the grey market, or it's UK stock.  You'll have seen my blog post earlier about the fact I hadn't seen Gillette Fusion handles on promotion this month - well, this is one HELL of a promotion (major-league loss leader).  No wonder sales of Fusion handles are heavily up (when promoted) but rep cartridges overtaken by Mach3.  Men - if you have half a dozen, a dozen - ore more - of unwanted Fusion handles cluttering up your bathroom (and possibly causing your wife, partner much annoyance) we'll shortly be repeating our Hamnesty (Handle Amnesty) so you can send them to us, we'll recycle them (or maybe use the for something clever) and send you a swish new Azor handle, affordably priced at the get-go, and with blades that shave closer, last longer - and COST LESS!

Peeps, remember to bookmark www.moneyshavingexpert.com - you'll be glad you did - very QT 'Hush Hush' - all will be revealed - and to be the first in the know, follow me on twitter - you might enjoy it!!!!

The Fifth Blade, King of Shaves Azor, Some Data & Twitter (original blog post here)

Below is a link to an interview I did late last year for the new entrepreneur website, Smarta.com  I hope you enjoy it! Click here to see it.  Enjoy!

On Wednesday I was privileged to be interviewed by Martin Waller, Deputy City Editor for the UK's prestigious newspaper, The Times - click here if you'd like to read what I had to say, (it's out in printed form tomorrow), here's an extract:

While launching Azor, Mr King came across 20,000 patents protecting variants on the simple razor. “The reason there are 20,000 patents out there is because the business of shaving men's hair is extraordinarily profitable. I estimate Gillette's gross margins at 94 per cent. It's effectively a global monopoly.” He admits that one of the most common questions he is asked is when he will sell out to the market leader, owned by Procter & Gamble, the consumer products combine.

You wonder whether he is obsessed with his huge rival. “I talk about them in the same way that perhaps Steve Jobs [founder of Apple], in a much bigger way, would talk about Microsoft. It seems to me that with the existence of a monopoly even in a simple market like shaving, there's the opportunity to disrupt it.”

(Source The Times, Saturday 17.1.09)

The interview was conducted in Ted's Grooming Room at Ted Baker & Friends, Cheapside, thanks to all the 'Efe' barbers there for their help - the pic is of the photographer just about to enjoy the King of Shaves, courtesy Ted.  Join us.  We are King of Shaves!

As markets plummet (see my immediate blog below) some people out there, will be making money.  It will be those types with the rare commodity of "Confidence and Commonsense" - the 'C' in my S.P.A.C.E analogy I talk about when I deliver presentations to young entrepreneurs, and Seasoned Businessmen alike.

These individuals I describe as owls.  Wise birds, with big eyes, that watch and observe (able to rotate their heads through nearly 360 degrees) and take action when they know they are almost certainly assured of making a killing (if they are a bird of prey) or success of managing their investors' funds.

With the FTSE plummeting 10% in the first 10 minutes of trading, "Blind Panic" is being used by the BBC to describe their reaction.

But, market sentiment can, and often does, turn on a sixpence.

Do GM stocks deserve to be at the value they were 58 years ago?  Could the Government instruct banks to not foreclose on mortgage payers in default, by taking stakes in mortgage owners and effectively becoming shareholders.

People need somewhere to live, a place to work, they need to earn cash, to spend in the economy.

Could the reaction to "the possible irrational panic of market sellers" be a few smart individuals who "call the bottom of the market" and realise, that when Big Pharma shares are going down (they make drugs, keep us alive, are more than necessary) that the Bottom is near.

A close relative of mine thinks the Dow is going to bottom at 5,000 (down from 14,700 a year ago).  Things cannot fall for ever.  For every action, there will be an equal and opposite reaction.

So, will our Government project "Confidence and Commonsense" into the market.  And will, the market listen.  I think the bottom is close, let's confidently predict that, slow down this dive into the abyss and hang on tight.

I'm glad I sell shaving products in the mass market, through a group of retailers like Tesco and Sainsbury, who will still be around, as people somehow need to get their hands on bread and baked beans, even if their Finest or Gourmet ranges gather dust on the shelf.

Life, it's a funny old thing.  And I love it.

i've spent the day touring London on our King of Shaves Azor 'Campaign Battlebus', and ironically, being nearly arrested by our boys in blue whilst outside Buckingham Palace in our fantastic bus.  Yes, our driver Matt turned left rather than right, and yes, maybe I shouldn't have been shouting "We're tough on stealth shaving taxes...on stubble and the causes of stubble" from the roof of our amAzor bus..  Otherwise we might have escaped the Boys in Blue....

...But hey, 'Live, Love, Laugh' as my friend Patrick tells me, and we had one awesome day, dspite the King nearly getting a Royal Arrest Warrant..  Will we get fined?  Possibly.  Did we make the policemen laugh with our "King of Shaves without the Ransom!"  Undoubtedly!

It was a great day, and I enjoyed it.  As did my team!  Thanks Dave G, Matt from Mum and our photographer, who's name escapes me - but i've posted some of his photo's here.

Now, onto launching shaving brands with rock bands.  Almost coincidentally, amazingly, p4 in today's Times (p4) featured Peter Jones of Dragon's Den backing an indie rock band with £75,000 for 30% of their earnings.

Nice try Peter, but we've got there first, by signing new British rock band Beanius to AmazoR records, as I'm moving from shaving lives to rocking them.  Full details about Beanius can be found here or here, and you can download For Free their awesome new single, John Tracy from their forthcoming album, The Folly of Five.

After I'd toured Oxford Street, Parliament Square, avoided capture outside Buck House, gone past Eros in Piccadilly Circus and arrived back at Boots flagship store at Sedley Place via Regent Street, it was time to relax a bit.  With a great team around me, I'd "tiggered" enough.

So, I ended up at The Angel at Henley, with my girlfriend, pint of Guinness and thinking how interesting life is.  And met Jody Starr, Freddie Starr's son.  Who's just been signed by a brand we're working with, to do fantastic musical stuff this summer.  And then I txtd "SC"  and "NB".

But that's another story.  All you need to know is our "King of Shaves Azor Rocks".

Marketing experts in the UK are wondering exactly how our King of Shaves Azor can take on Gillette Fusion with one millionth-squillionth of the spend.  Well, one thing's for sure, it's not by doing things conventionally (doh!).  And it's not by having a group of crocked or waning champions on our books either...

You can read an article on what one of the UK's leading marketing magazines thinks about our chances here.

The thing about 'conventional' is "that's how things have been done".  Note the have.  Not will.  Not necessarily the best (Good old Lord Levehulme's advertising adage is in rude health).

Well, I've blogged about our Facebook 'Slingshot' campaign, that only I know the true number of ads, and the spend behind them.  We've done our "fair shave" manifesto launch and the campaing BattleBus engine's ticking over, ready to hit the road shortly.  We've done our first 'ultimate close shave' - the skyshave and are planning more.  And we've run some 'shaving software' adverts in the weekly & monthly men's press.  

But now it's going to get serious.  Because in a few days, the Azor will move from 'soft-launch' at Sainsbury's to a full blown market launch backed by one of the UK's biggest and best retailers.

Who?  When?  To what extent?  What sort of promotions?  Why will it work?  All these questions and more will start to become evident as our King of Shaves Azor continues to deliver a superlative performance as a product, but also marks itself as a brand that's "About YOU, not THEM".  If you kick your day into play with the King of Shaves, where could YOUR life take YOU?

And that brings me to Beanius.  Alternative rock may not be your thing.  You may be an Abba addict, a Disco diva or simply enjoy listening to popular music.  Who knows.  But there is one thing about music, and Madonna sang about it on a track some years back, on her track "Music" - it brings people together.  Well, Beanius are about "Music" combined with another song of hers, "Jump". 

And why am I involved with Beanius.  Well, their founder, Matt Bean works for me (his 'day' job is sales support executive), and he and his band (including his brother, drummer Doug, Scott Evanson, vocals and John Scott, Bass) are pretty damn good, and i thought "Well, Will - you always fancied being involved in music, dreaming of being on that yacht with Simon le Bon singing Rio, so why not do the next best thing, and launch, and maybe help manage a talented band...  After all, if you wanna be a rock star, gotta shave like a King".  Difficult?  Sure, but hey - I'm taking on Gillette!  Difficult is relative.

Madonna.  'Music'.  'Jump'.  Beanius.  The last British band that started with a B, ended with an S, had seven letters and comprised four members did rather well.  Matt, Scott, Doug, John - let's Rock.  Cue John Tracy, the debut single from their forthcoming album, 'The Folly of Five'.

Beanius.  Never more than 4.
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