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I bought a Braun shaver in 2023 and it has taught me a lot about enshittification. While this post is a way for me to vent some frustration, it's also a case study on how physical products are enshittified.
I got to hear Cory talk about enshittification at PyCon and I read the book Enshittification last year. [1] In his strict definition, enshittification is about big tech companies making their products worse from all sides. However, Cory has talked about how the word has taken on a larger meaning because (1) it puts a name to the feeling we all share that everything is getting worse and (2) it tries to give an explanation for the processes that led us here. [2]
The structure of enshittification as outlined by Cory is:
First, platforms are good to their users.
Then they abuse their users to make things better for their business customers.
Next, they abuse those business customers to claw back all the value for themselves.
Finally, they have become a giant pile of shit.
This pattern is everywhere.
The Shaver
I bought a series 7 Braun electric foil shaver in 2023. [3] The model was not cheap, but certainly not the most expensive choice in that product category.
When you buy a razor or shaver, the foil/blade will wear down over time and need to be replaced. This is a lucrative business model for companies since it provides a source of recurring revenue. So good in fact, that there is a business model named after it. This is also a scenario where incentives are misaligned: if you make a blade too good people will buy them less.
In 2020 Braun redesigned the 7 Series shavers. The new models are cheaper to buy, but also perform worse. So when I bought my shaver in 2023, I inadvertently bought the redesigned model. I'm usually pretty good at researching products first, but even I did not notice. Likely, this was Braun's intent when using the Series 7 branding on what is essentially a different product line.
Reducing the build quality on the shaver heads allowed them to improve the margin of cost on sales for the most frequently sold part. The most frustrating aspect of the situation is that the replaceable piece, the shaver head, is the worst part of the product. Every replacement head I have ever bought felt noticeably worse than the one that came with the shaver.
This is not uncommon in a world where counterfeits are everywhere. You can find plenty of posts online about how to ID OEM vs counterfeits by sight. [4] Thus, you will see a lot of product review distributions like this listing from Walmart:
You will say to yourself, "well if I want to guarantee OEM parts, I'll buy from the manufacturer", to which you will see the following reviews on the Braun website:
When you dig into those reviews and reviews at other vendors online, you will see experiences very similar to my own: The product claims they last 18 months, but I have never been anywhere near that outside of the original head. All subsequent heads I have bought barely make it to 6 months. That is great for Braun who is in the business of selling shaver heads.
"This pattern is everywhere"
Here is how the enshittification pattern plays out:
"First, platforms are good to their users"
Braun used to make products that people enjoyed. Customers didn't feel like they were being fleeced. People literally go to a Braun collectors fair to see the wonderful older products, [5] so no wonder the branding still holds sway even after their Procter & Gamble buyout in 2012.
"Then they abuse their users..."
The original usage of enshittification focused on big tech platforms where there are both users and business customers. [6] For physical products there isn't this divide, there is just one middle step of misery. However, the same forces are at work here. Lack of competition, vendor lock-in, and product stickiness keep users in an ecosystem as their experience degrades. Notably, the razor blade business model usually involves selling a cheap handle and then expensive blades, but in Braun's business model the shaver and accessories are both expensive. This acts as a sunk cost to increase switching costs.
"Finally, they have become a giant pile of shit."
Eventually, we reach bottom. Cost cutting gets to a point where the official product feels like a counterfeit. Somehow we are still using them.
Enshittification all the way down
Even returning bad products has been enshittified. Most recently, I relented and bought a new shaver head off Amazon. How bad could it be? Pretty bad:
The package was opened and then taped shut. What's more, there was particulate on the head in the packaging that looked like skin:
This feels like a physical manifestion of enshittification itself.
As a consumer when faced with a situation like this, I now have to bear the cost of time to remedy the situation. I opened up the return item flow in Amazon and was presented with only two options:
- Go into the middle of Boston to a location that is annoying to reach.
- Pay UPS for packaging for the return.
However, there is a different, secret return flow you can go to through amazon.com/hz/contact-us, rather than going through the order listing directly. If you say the right incantation of choices you will get more return location options. Of course, I still have to take time out of my day to return an item that arrived damaged.
I want out
So why am I still using this shaver? I don't really know. I know I would feel bad throwing out the device. I know I could give the device away on TrashNothing to avoid creating waste, but then I'm trapping someone else in the enshittocene.
What I wanted to hit on here is that there previously was a solution that worked well: the legacy 7 series, and that is no longer available to consumers because the manufacturer wanted to reduce costs and extract as much rent as possible. [7] I know I will find a better alternative to switch to, but that is not what this post is about. This post is a lamentation about how we all ended up here in the first place.
- The book is excellent and I recommend it. ↩︎
- In the book a big focus is also what we can do about it. Thus the subtitle. ↩︎
- Bundle model number 7071cc. ↩︎
- Also by weight since they are significantly lighter. ↩︎
- That blog uses the same theme on Ghost as I do! ↩︎
- Think ad sales for example. ↩︎
- Yes, there are other options that work well. I mostly like foil shavers because I don't grow that much facial hair, they are super quick, and I am very greedy with my time. Avarice is my constant companion. ↩︎