Shaving at work a perk of the job

Press, 19 December 1985, Page 44

Shaving at work a perk of the job

By BART ZIEGLER, of Associated Press, through NZPA Boston Every week day, almost 300 employees of the world’s largest razor blade manufacturer arrive at work unshaven. At an appointed time, the men take their place in a row of 28 cubicles, apply shaving cream to their faces and become part of the Gillette company’s never-ending search for a better blade.

Their daily shaving ritual is often watched by experts who record the number of strokes, the time spent shaving and other factors. Sometimes the experts even collect the stubble in jars for examination. For Gillette, razor research means big money and security that looks almost as tight as some military installations. “You can imagine that the leader in any market would also be the leader in

research and development,” said a Gillette spokesman, Greg Niblett. “We are always looking for how to get a better shave.”

Gillette spent SUS6I.9 million ($107.7 million) last year on research for all its products. Although it will not release a figure 6n shaving research, Mr Niblett said a good percentage of that was spent on blade and razor development. Gillette, which pioneered the disposable blade at the turn of the century, sells 60 Eer cent of the two billion lades bought each year in the United States. It is an edge the Boston-based company does not want to lose. The employees volunteer to shave at work, usually during work hours, at the 11-hectare complex, which turns out about 5.4 million blades a day. The men, who range from production workers to department managers, take their place in a long row of booths, each equipped with a mirror and sink. A test

centre employee hands them shaving cream and a razor through a window and, in undershirts or barechested, they go to work. Afterward, the men check off boxes on a computer card to rate their shave according to smoothness, closeness, freedom from nicks and cuts, and over-all comfort. The men never know what they are testing. It could be an experimental blade, an existing Gillette product, or one made by a competitor. The centre has been in use since 1973, and some of the men have tested razors for years. They receive no additional pay, though they often are given gift certificates or movie passes. “Basically it is very convenient for me to shave here,” said Gary Zakrzewski, a manager in Gillette’s product evaluation division who has shaved at work every week day morning for 2% years. “It does save some time