Who invented disposable razor

Production began in Gillette won a patent for his product the next year. Competition was fierce from the start, for two reasons. First, virtually half of the world's population was a potential customer. Second, once the basic idea was made public, modifications multiplied at an incredible rate. For example, Gillette introduced his double-edged blade, of the still familiar type, in ; soon, so did many other companies. In a series of patent battles, Gillette Co.

Over the years, he became a kind of international celebrity, since his portrait was featured on the wrappers of the tens of billions of Gillette blades sold all over the world. In theory, however — and despite his given name — King Gillette had always been an opponent of capitalism.

He wrote a number of books promoting a socialist utopia, beginning with "The Human Drift" , in which he declared competition to be the root of all evil. They use open-blade Sheffield-style razors--and claim, of course, that it results in a better shave. All Sections. About Us. B2B Publishing. Business Visionaries. Hot Property. Times Events. US Patent No.

Born January 5, - Died July 9, Related Inductees. Previous Slide Next Slide. They are especially prevalent with digital goods.

If you have a huge library of games for your PlayStation, or books for your Kindle, it is a big thing to switch to another platform. Switching costs don't have to be financial. They can come in the form of time, or hassle. If I am already familiar with Adobe's Photoshop software, I might prefer to pay for an expensive upgrade rather than buy a cheaper alternative, which I would then have to learn how to use.

That is why software vendors offer free trials, and why banks and utilities offer special "teaser" rates to draw people in. When they quietly raise the price, many will not bother to change. Switching costs can be psychological, too - a result of brand loyalty.

If Gillette's marketing department persuades me that generic blades give an inferior shave, then I will happily keep paying extra for Gillette-branded blades. That may explain the otherwise curious fact that Gillette's profits increased after his patents expired and competitors could make compatible blades.

How Ikea's Billy took over the world. How economics killed the antibiotic dream. How the invention of paper changed the world. What makes gambling wrong but insurance right? Perhaps, by then, customers had got used to thinking of Gillette as a high-end brand, worth paying a premium for.

Two-part pricing can be highly inefficient, and economists have puzzled over why consumers stand for it. The most plausible explanation is that they get confused. Either they don't realise they will be exploited later, or they do realise but find it hard to think ahead and pick out the best deal.

The irony is that the razors-and-blades model - charging customers a premium for basics such as ink and coffee - is about as far as you can get from King Camp Gillette's vision of a single United Company producing life's necessities as cheaply as possible.

Evidently, it's easier to inspire a new model for business than a new model for society.