HeadBlade

HeadBlade is an American grooming brand built around a single, narrow purpose: shaving the head. Its founder, Todd Greene, designed the original razor in 1997 [2] after years of struggling to shave his own scalp with an ordinary handle razor, and the first commercial product reached the market in 1999. From that one tool the company grew into a small catalogue of razors, blades and care products aimed specifically at people who shave their heads, and it remains active today, selling directly to customers online.

The company is based in California and trades as HeadBlade, Inc. Its founding date is recorded two ways in its own materials: 1997, the year Greene designed the razor, and 1999, when the first product, the HeadBlade Classic, was introduced to market [6]. The two dates describe the same story at different stages rather than a genuine dispute.

Todd Greene, a 1989 Bowdoin College graduate who began his career in college fundraising, created the razor out of frustration with the tools available to bald men. HeadBlade describes the result as "a razor designed by a head shaver for the head shaver," with an ergonomic handle meant to deliver, in the company's words, "the fastest, closest, safest shave for the head." The design rests on two principles the brand still cites: the user should be able to shave by feel with the blade held close to the scalp, and the razor needs two points of contact so it can pivot and follow the curves of the head.

The shape was unusual. Rather than a long handle, the HeadBlade sits low in the hand and is worn almost like a ring, guided by the fingertips across the skull. That form became the brand's signature and the basis of a design the company holds under patent [8].

The first product, the HeadBlade Classic, launched in 1999. Recognition followed quickly: in 2000 the design was named in TIME magazine's "Ten Best Designs of 2000", and in 2005 it was added to the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art in New York [6]. According to Wikipedia, the Classic also received an IDSA Silver Award for design excellence.

Later models reworked the original idea. The HeadBlade Sport arrived in 2006 with a firmer rubber grip and harder wheels. In 2012 the HeadBlade ATX moved the blade to the back of the razor so the user pulls rather than pushes it, a layout the company likened to an all-terrain vehicle [6]. The HeadBlade MOTO followed in late 2016 and won a Red Dot Design Award in 2017 [6]. Alongside the razors the brand expanded into care products for the scalp, including the HeadSlick shaving cream, and later added Aveline, a separate line aimed at women's body and leg shaving.

Greene died from cancer in February 2020 [2]. The company has continued under his successors, stating that it is "committed to building on his legacy and introducing the next generation of head shaving products," and reviewers note that the product range has grown since his death.

HeadBlade occupies a deliberately narrow niche. Where general-purpose razors are made for the face, its tools are built for the geometry of the scalp, and the brand's positioning rests on that specialisation: a dedicated instrument for people who shave their heads rather than a multi-use razor. The trade-off is acknowledged even by reviewers who like the product, who note that the unconventional grip suits committed head-shavers more than those wanting one razor for both head and face.

The current catalogue centres on the ATX and MOTO razor lines, supported by HB-series cartridge refills (HB2, HB4, HB6). Care products include the HeadSlick shave cream, the ClearHead aftershave treatment and the Aveline range of body lotion, scrub and shave cream. The defining technical feature across the razors is the low, pivoting body that keeps two contact points on the skin so the blade tracks the head's contours, a mechanism the brand presents as the core of its patented design.

Beyond the design honours for its razors, HeadBlade has drawn press attention tied to its founder. Greene was named to GQ magazine's 2010 "Bald 100" list [6], a fitting note for a brand whose entire premise is built around embracing baldness.

HeadBlade remains active. It operates a live online storefront with a current product range and maintains active social media accounts, and as of 2024 it was selling directly to consumers online. Its distribution has shifted markedly over the brand's history: it began as an e-commerce company, expanded to more than 14,000 retail locations, and later returned to selling only online [7]. The brand reports operating with a small team. There is one unresolved detail in the public record about its base: the company's own contact page gives its headquarters as Oceanside, California [4], while Wikipedia lists Gardena, California [6], and an early founder interview placed it in Los Angeles. The differing addresses appear to reflect relocations over time rather than a contradiction, with Oceanside the current location named by the company.