Women's shaving subscription service is 'paying women back' for years spent 'overpaying' for razors
On behalf of all retailers who have charged women more than men for products simply because they’re for women, also known as the very real “Pink Tax,” shaving retailer Billie is truly sorry.
Billie, the brand-new razor subscription service for women, launched on Nov. 14 with no reservations about its brand identity and what it represents. On its homepage, the tagline is “Razors made for Womankind.” Other outlets have compared the company to the Dollar Shave Club, a shaving subscription service for men.
There’s a big difference, though: Billie is denouncing the “Pink Tax,” so-called after the typical color of many products intended for female consumers, and says it intends to pay customers back.
“We came up with the Pink Tax Rebate to ‘reimburse’ women for all the years spent overpaying for women’s razors,” Billie’s co-founders, Georgina Gooley and Jason Bravman, tell Yahoo Lifestyle.
That reimbursement includes a credit that shoppers can use if they share a referral with friends. Buyers can earn up to $5, $10, or $20 in credit for every 5, 10, or 20 people they send a referral link to. That may be good marketing, too, but Gooley and Bravman say they created the brand with women’s needs first and foremost.
“The shaving industry has been largely created by and for men, which may explain why women are still overpaying for women’s razors,” the founders say. “Billie was created to fill a gap in the market and provide women with premium-quality shaving and body care products uniquely designed for womankind, without the ‘Pink Tax.'”
In addition to the anti-Pink Tax credits, the brand also plans to donate 1 percent of its revenue to support women’s causes around the world.
So far, the products seem to live up the hype. The blades are touted as some of the sharpest in the world and have a “no-clogging” design. The products also claim to be toxin and paraben-free, GMO and animal-friendly, and have top ratings within the EWG Skin Deep database, a review site for beauty industry products.
The founders hope the movement continues beyond their company. “We encourage all brands to reevaluate the pricing structure of women’s products so that they are comparable to men’s products,” they say.
Hear, hear.
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