Fuzz off

Now you can tame your beard into perfect symmetry with laser-guided precision. Philips’ new launch, Philips BeardTrimmer 9000, beams a red line on to the shaver’s face to align the style before he starts trimming so that he can maintain a sharp edge and shape.

There have been trimmers earlier in Philips’ basket, but none equipped with a laser. Anurita Chopra, Director (Marketing), Personal Care, Philips India, says a beard that is awry is the opposite of stylish. And “we’re giving a little bit of guidance” with this gizmo. There is a high-precision setting on the gadget. Another special feature is that it works exactly for the amount of time charged. This gadget is for the man who is very aware of his looks. And an evolving customer. As the model in the launch video says, he used to want gadgets to play with, now he wants gadgets which can make him look good.

How does it work? You can set the length setting on the zoom wheel in the handle to help you get an even trim. The trimmer is two-sided and this will make it easy for it to reach hard-to-reach areas like those under the nose and around the mouth. Philips says it has even built in a mechanism to ensure the blades stay sharp – the blades brush against each other as they trim, sharpening themselves. There is a comb for precision, and a comb for control.

In fact, it’s all about tight control. The LED display shows your chosen length setting in millimeters, as well as the battery level, so that you do not get caught short as you are trimming. All you have to do is make sure you are near a plug so that you can plug in and continue trimming. A one-hour charge gives you 60 minutes of cordless use.

Chopra says there is no danger from the laser light. The product comes with a two-year guarantee and worldwide voltage compatibility and does not ever need to be oiled, claims Philips. It costs Rs 7,495. Philips has other trimmers priced between Rs 1,195 and Rs 3,595, gadgets that range from basic trimmers to advanced shavers. “The idea is not to cannibalise, but to make sure that we have something to offer each one of our consumers,” says Chopra.

Chopra says “Philips Personal Care, specifically the male grooming portfolio, has been the fastest growing category for Philips in India. Our focus is to serve the conscious urban man, who is spending a lot of time and money on his appearance and lifestyle and wants more from his grooming gadgets.” The company’s target audience is men aged 18-28.

According to her, more and more Indians are shaving electrically rather than manually. The electrical portion of the €300 million men’s grooming market in India (excluding pre- and post-shaving products) is growing at 30 per cent annually. It is pretty much the same size and growth rate for women’s grooming, which includes hair styling and depilation products.

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