THE HAGUE, Netherlands – Consumer products giant Unilever says it has agreed to buy the fast-growing California-based men’s grooming business Dollar Shave Club for an undisclosed sum.
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Established in 2011, Dollar Shave Club is a start-up built on the idea of selling inexpensive razors directly to consumers without the overhead of running stores. In addition to the subscription razor blades service, the company also sells grooming products like shaving cream and after-shave lotion.
Unilever, which already owns personal care products including Axe, Dove and Pond’s, said in a statement Wednesday that Dollar Shave Club has “transformed the shaving category with its lifestyle brand” and has built a membership of 3.2 million since its establishment in 2012. The company had sales of $152 million in 2015.
Michael Dubin, founder and CEO of Dollar Shave Club, says “DSC couldn’t be happier to have the world’s most innovative and progressive consumer-product company in our corner.”
Dubin will continue to serve as CEO after the takeover.