In today’s world of mass production, it’s challenging to find quality products that are made using only pure materials, and natural processes. Japan’s Ikeuchi Organic Inc. has been doing both and has redefined the traditional manufacturing process. Established in 1953 by Tadao Ikeuchi, the company began production in a bonded factory and slowly began to export to Europe in the late 1960’s. Today, Ikeuchi products can be found across Europe, North America and Asia thanks to independent and major retailers which…
Category: Brand Profiles
This is the place to go to find more about the history of those brands that have captured our imagination for centuries and those new ground-breaking ones. The unifying theme is their drive for quality in producing the finest grooming products and accessories for men.
Scaramouche + Fandango Lookbook
Scaramouche + Fandango is putting simplicity back into male grooming. Full of the minerals and vitamins that your body needs, they’re more than just pretty packaging. Their Hair Cream was shortlisted for the Best Male Hair Product in the Pure Beauty awards. Travel-friendly and compact, these high-performance products are all made in the United Kingdom. (See more Scaramouche + Fandango products here)
Kent Celebrates 240-Year Anniversary
Kent celebrates 240 years of excellence! Renowned family-owned British business, Kent, is celebrating their 240th year, officially making them the world’s oldest hairbrush manufacturer. Known for their handmade and professional line of brushes, the company continues to dominate the world’s beauty industry thanks to their impeccable reputation and highly sought after quality products. Heightening their reputation is the inclusion of the royal coat of arms on their luxury products as a result of the Royal Warrant given to them by…
How They’re Made: Suwada Nail Clippers
Most guys have a set of nail clippers in their bathrooms. There’s nothing more off-putting than long, gross, yellow nails. But are you caring for your nails properly? The traditional compound-lever clippers are cheap and easy, but the mechanism smashes down your nail, tearing it and leading to uneven growth. Nail nippers work like scissors, cutting in a straight line. This keeps your nails clean and even, and helps prevent nasty ingrown hairs down the road. If you’ve got thicker…
Brickell: An Innovative Men’s Skincare Company
Down in Miami, where bright, clear days abound, it takes a special strength of the will to resist becoming an avid sun-worshipper. Brickell company founder, Josh Meyer, who grew up under the golden Miami sun, was shocked the first time his girlfriend pointed to fine wrinkles forming on his face. At the time, he was in his late twenties, and it was a strong wake-up call, realizing that he, an active young man, would have to start monitoring how much sun exposure he…
Brand Spotlight: Iris Hantverk
With a history dating back to 1870, Iris Hantverk is a company that has immersed itself in community betterment ever since its beginnings. In Stockholm, Dr. Axel Beskov founded the Manilla School, which was a workhouse for visually impaired craftsmen, most of whom lived at the workhouse, and this group slowly evolved into what would become Iris Hantverk. Around 20 years later, a congregation of visually impaired craftsmen founded their own organization with the incentive to further integrate the blind…
Marco Finardi Crafts Artisan Brushes for Marfin
In a mechanized, modern world, where commodities are rarely made by hand, let alone by the hands of one person, it can be refreshing to see someone step forward and make his livelihood by his craft. There’s a unique charm to something roughly hewn from raw materials, none of which can be mass replicated; each one bears a personal touch that lends special value to the fruit of one’s hard labour. Marco Finardi, an artist from Cremona, Italy, worked…
Speick Grooming Products: A Force of Nature
Every year during the autumn months, high up in the Austrian Alps, you’ll see local farmers. They are gathering delicate, yet discreet little plants in an annual harvest known as the Speick Sting. These mountain farmers are workers from Speick Natural Cosmetics Company, gathering the Alpine valerian plant in the Nock Mountain region of Carinthia, Austria. This is the only place in the world where the Speick plant grows, and Speick is the only company that has the rights to…
Junichi Tanaka Artisanal Shaving Scuttles Bring Class and Originality
One of our most-requested out-of-stock items in the last few months have been the Junichi Tanaka shaving scuttles. And every time a customer calls in asking when we’ll have more of these wonderful scuttles, we have to give the same reply: we don’t know! The reason for this frustrating response is simple: every single one of these gorgeous mugs are handmade by one man. And when you’re working out of Whonnock, British Columbia it can be hard to ignore nature…
Kent Brushes: Handcrafted Hair Brushes and Shaving Brushes
Kent Brushes began with GB Kent and Sons and it’s now the oldest known hair brush maker in the world. The company started making their prestigious handcrafted brushes over 236 years ago in 1777 during the reign of King George III, and continues to be one of the oldest and most venerable companies in Britain. The high regard of these luxury brushes has ensured that Kent has received the Royal Warrant which allows the company to bear the royal coat…
Klar Seifen in Pictures (II): Manufacturing Process
With a myriad of exclusive soap products, the experts of Klar maintained the successful recipe of 1840 and expanded on their traditional concept. Located in Heidelberg, the oldest soap manufacturer of Germany creates luxurious fine soaps, liquid soaps, hair & body shampoos as well as peeling and body oils.
Klar Seifen in Pictures (I): History
Known as Germany’s oldest company in producing soap, Klar has maintained a reputation where quality as well as traditional recipes are highly valued. For longer than 170 years, the German soap experts at Klar have chosen only the finest ingredients able to offer customers an unforgettable cleansing experience.