A BRIEF HISTORY OF BEARD OIL

Ahhh, beard oil. The wondrous, rich, gentlemanly oil that satiates your face follicles with each application. Unfortunately, that’s not how most consumers think of it. They think of the nonsense, mass-marketed, “put a fancy label on any bottle of generic stuff” product that is more hype than help.

Starting in 2006, companies realized they could make big money with little effort (and less quality) as long as they marketed it correctly. It’s like putting lipstick on a pig. Not only does it not look good, that pig is even smart enough to know the beard oil these companies were peddling belonged in a sty.

But 2006. What a year. Beard oil flooded the market and boy did things get...saturated. All of a sudden beard oil was a cookie-cutter product that was neither as fun or as interesting as cookies - let alone staying true to the actual history of one of man’s most important innovations. Don’t get me wrong, beard oil is amazing - when it’s done the way it was meant to be.

Let’s go swimming in the history of oil shall we. OK - that sounded better in my head. We’re not going to actually swim in oil...but...well, let’s just get on with it. Prior to 2006 men's grooming products were not really something you went into to make loads of money. The cosmetics industry was a fucking snooze, knowing that they will always have women to sell their overpriced new miracle creams too and for men this was just simply as boring as dry toast.

But then times changed. That was until a New York Times article in 2014.

Who stated ‘’ Beards have shed their underground connotations and are sported by Wall street Titans, professional sports golden boys, US weekly cover boys and more show TV hosts’’ (DR Weil) Like skin cares ‘’metrosexual movement'' of the 90s, the ‘’ lumbersexuals’’ of the world today know that to have a beard, one has got to take care of it; and beard oil is exactly what they need to do so.

You may not be aware of this article and to be honest neither did we until recently whilst writing this but let me tell you it changed men's grooming world more than you know. Also, shout out to the term “lumbersexuals.” Because then came the even bigger money, the American Dream was on the slippery trail of beard oil.

„That’s why they call it the American Dream, because you have to be asleep to believe in.“
George Carlin

The Money came raining down and everyone wanted to get in on the action. Barbers became celebrities and exploded on all the social networks. Tight fades. Beards and a pair of tiny silver scissors = instant celebrity.

In every drugstore you can get a selection of different beard oils. We don't even need to start with the offers on Amazon. Everyone wanted a piece of the oil pie. Even John and Sue and Rita and Bob too could easily create a logo and stick it on an off the shelf product and start selling beard oil. Guys, I’m not going lie, even we got in on the action with white label products. We learned quickly this was a bad idea. Maybe even worse than putting lipstick on a pig. This was like a tuxedo on a pig...with no pants.

As this all escalated we took a step back and realised that there was a better way to do things. Not cheaper, and definitely not less time consuming but better. So we went back to the beginning. The actual history of beard oil. Turns out it began much before Instagram. Even before MySpace. Even before...well, almost everything.

5000 years ago in ancient India, someone with a white beard was considered wise. The ancient Greeks associated a beard with masculinity. The Persians also grew long and wild beards. The men of Rome were for a long time not friends of shaving and with their Germanic neighbors a man shaved for the first time when he killed an enemy. Thank goodness that tradition faded. Already the Egyptians dyed their beard and decorated it with gold... nice. Talk about the Midas touch.

So, yeah - beardmania was pretty much running wild for hundreds of years. But how does one care for such an important fashion statement? Pet it? Brush it? Sing it a song? Nope. Oil, baby!

The first men who demonstrably came into the enjoyment of beard oil, were guys from today's Iraq. In Mesopotamia, a few thousand years ago, great importance was attached to the care of facial hair. Those Babylonians rubbed their beard with oil at that time. More precisely, sesame oil. Today it is assumed that the oil served as protection against dirt and vermin, especially lice, again...nice. Anything to protect from vermin is a win, we can all agree.

So, as you can see, beards, beard care and yes also beard oil have a really long history behind them. But what about the future of beard care? Where does this thousand-year-old path lead us? Let’s look back to look ahead (so ultimately we can look down at a glorious beard). Abraham Lincoln once said:

„The best way to predict your future is to create it.“

That's why we at Wellwood set ourselves the goal of creating the best beard oil ever. Like, so good the Egyptians, Romans, Greeks and every prominent dude in Ancient India would give us so many high fives our hand would end up hurting. And guess what... we did it! Don't believe us? Then read on…

What do you need? Well, only the best ingredients, of course. Natural ingredients, without the addition of cheap chemicals - unlike what the big corporations do to maximize their profits. There are some oils out there that are really quite okay-ish. But look at what ingredients are floating in some of them. Don't even get me started on the fragrances that are offered there. What applies to clothing and nutrition, etc., also applies to beard oil - quality just has its price.

Organic and sustainability are not just buzzwords for us, but non-negotiable principles. We respect the history, purpose and benefits of beard oil. We use only the best natural oils available: Such as Cacay, Rosehip, Pomegranate, Argan and Jojoba.... just to list a few.

Every man looks better with the right care, that's for sure. Even the Ancient Greeks made sure their heroes looked their best when they were carving their likeness out of marble. No historical bad beards there. And whilst we all are not as blessed with the perfect skin, beard or hair, the quest for perfectly groomed manly mane or slick razor sharp suited and booted style akin to the likes of Harvey Specter from suits this also involves many unpleasant issues like, razor burn, pimples, beard itch, blackheads.... And wasting money on shit products... one or the other is familiar to all of us I’m sure. At worst, you’ve been burned by both - wasting money on a pile of pointless products. So let’s stop that, shall we?

This brings us exactly to the crucial point: we are all - fortunately - very different. One guy has never had a pimple in his life, but always gets dry and cracked skin. For the next one, it's the other way around. There’s a third guy who’s tried every beard oil on planet earth and can’t seem to find success.. We know, it’s the worst. This makes one point clear: there is no one answer or one product that helps us all. Every man is unique, so each one requires an individual product - tailored precisely to his needs.

Just as everyone has a favorite fragrance. There is no such thing as the ultimate super perfume that appeals to the whole world. Then we would all smell the same.... yikes. What is this, Ancient Mesopotamia?

„The worst thing I can be is the same as everybody else.“
Arnold Schwarzenegger

All these considerations have motivated us at Wellwood to develop a Custom Oil just for you, made from the best ingredients and tailored to your individual needs. Topped off with a fragrance that is as unique as you are. It's all in your hands. Don't be fooled by the big corporations.

How do we do it? With our U.F.P. / "Unique Formulation Process" - our exclusive way to develop beard oil recipes. The combination of your individual requirements with our many years of know-how makes all other products look old. Guaranteed! Glorious! Greatness awaits!

The time of hipster beards may be slowly coming to an end but the era of men wanting to look and feel good will never end. Nor should it. Sure there will be guys or companies out there that are going to not agree with our views but to quote Harvey Specter:

"Let them hate, just make sure they spell our name right."