Art of Shaving

The Art of Shaving is a men’s grooming brand focused on premium shaving, beard care, skin care, and fragrance products sold through its ecommerce site and wholesale partners. As of March 2024, it operates as a product line within Procter & Gamble’s grooming portfolio rather than as a stand‑alone retail tenant with its own store fleet.

The company was founded in 1996 in New York City by husband‑and‑wife team Eric Malka and Myriam Zaoui. They built the brand around a four‑step wet‑shaving system that combined pre‑shave oil, shaving cream, shaving brushes, and after‑shave balms. That concept helped popularize a more ritual‑driven, high‑end approach to men’s shaving and laid the groundwork for a network of boutiques and barbershops that many landlords and brokers came to know in malls and lifestyle centers.

A key milestone came in 2009, when Procter & Gamble acquired The Art of Shaving and integrated it alongside Gillette. Under P&G’s ownership, the brand expanded from early specialty shops into a broader distribution model that included mall‑based stores, barber lounge formats, and shop‑in‑shops, while also placing its products in department stores and on third‑party ecommerce platforms. Over time the assortment grew to include multiple fragrance families, travel items, and gifting options at the premium end of the men’s grooming category.

That brick‑and‑mortar strategy changed during the COVID‑19 period. P&G elected to close all remaining The Art of Shaving stores and barbershop locations, effectively winding down the brand’s role as a specialty retail tenant. Former boutiques in enclosed malls and high‑end open‑air centers have not been backfilled by new stores under the same name, and there is no active program for new sites, RFPs, or broker engagement tied specifically to this brand.

As of March 2024, The Art of Shaving reaches customers primarily through direct‑to‑consumer ecommerce and wholesale placements with major department stores and other retail partners in the United States and select international markets. The brand’s current emphasis is on product development, updated scents, and stronger online reach rather than physical expansion. For owners and leasing teams, The Art of Shaving is best viewed as a legacy specialty retailer whose former boutiques and barbershop lounges are now closed, while the name continues to appear on product fixtures and shop‑in‑shop executions managed by larger host retailers.

The underlying brand remains active and recognizable in premium men’s grooming, which helps sustain its presence on department‑store floors and digital marketplaces even in the absence of a dedicated store fleet. Any future in‑person expression of The Art of Shaving would most likely come through those host retailers, not through new stand‑alone leases or direct corporate site selection.