Safety razor become locked into buying their proprietary cartridges, for as long as the manufacturer continues to make them. Subsequent to introducing the higher-priced Mach3 in 1998, Gillette's blade sales realized a 50% increase, and profits increased in an otherwise mature market. The marketing of increasing numbers of blades in a cartridge has been parodied since the 1970s. The debut episode of "Saturday Night Live" in 1975 included a parody advertisement for the Triple Trac Razor, shortly after the first two-blade cartridge for men's razors was advertised. "Mad" magazine announced the "Trac 76", arranged as a chain of cartridges with a handle
Straight razor Straight razor A straight razor is a razor with a blade that can fold into its handle. They are also called open razors and cut-throat razors. The predecessors of the modern straight razors include bronze razors, with cutting edges and fixed handles, produced by craftsmen from Ancient Egypt during the New Kingdom (1569 - 1081 BC). Solid gold and copper razors were also found in Ancient Egyptian tombs dating back to the 4th millennium BC. The first steel-edged cutthroat razors were manufactured in Sheffield in 1680. By the late 1680s, early 1690s, razors with silver-covered handles along with other Sheffield-made