Razor and blades model the disposable safety razor and founder of Gillette Safety Razor Company, Gillette did not originate this model. The urban legend about Gillette is that he realized that a disposable razor blade would not only be convenient, but also generate a continuous revenue stream. To foster that stream, he sold razors at an artificially low price to create the market for the blades. But Gillette razors were expensive when they were first introduced and the price only went down after his patents expired: it was his competitors who invented the razors-and-blades model. This model has been used in several businesses for
Razor strop Razor strop A razor strop (or razor strap) is a flexible strip of leather, canvas, denim fabric, balsa wood, or other soft material, used to straighten and polish the blade of a straight razor, a knife, or a woodworking tool like a chisel. In many cases stropping re-aligns parts of the blade edge that have been bent out of alignment. In other cases, especially when abrasive polishing compound is used, stropping may remove a small amount of metal. Stropping can also burnish (i.e. push metal around on) the blade. The strop may be a hanging strop or a hand-held paddle.