Why Tristan Walker's Bevel Is Giving Men of Color The Right Razors
The Walker & Company CEO is opening up about his experience, the importance of grooming, and the future of Bevel.
By Louis Baragona
Outcast Agency
For nearly the first 30 years of his life, Tristan Walker didn't believe that shaving was for him.
It wasn't that he didn't try. He did. But as a man of color, his tools were limited and his options weren't ideal – think cheesy, uncool packaging and even worse, ill-suited, irritating products unable to work with textured hair or sensitive skin, all leading to razor bumps, inflammation, and discoloration.
Walker did what he could with what was accessible in stores, but usually, this meant products that were unreliable, ineffective, or simply not right for his skin. More often than not, it ended in bumps, dark spots, and ingrown hairs.
"I couldn't find products for my specific needs for my skin type and my lifestyle," Walker said.
In fact, a reported 80 percent of black people suffer from razor bumps and associated conditions. This problem is worsened when met with razors that are unable to work in the direction of coarse, thick, or curly hair, and the subsequent inflamed bumps can result in dark spots or discoloration.
As an 18-year-old intern on Wall Street with a "scraggly" beard that he attempted to manage with the few less-than-stellar tools available to him at the time, Walker recalls an older white man singling him out in a crowd of other interns and telling him, "Take that shit off your face."
It was a jarring moment, one that would later leave Walker questioning how he could work with tools that weren't made specifically for his hair or skin.
"What products can I use? Who's defining what I consider my best face?" Walker wondered. "Even if I had wanted to shave, I couldn't have."
Walker often experienced what many other people of color do when they head to stores for things like grooming products: a lack of availability.
This meant that issues like hyperpigmentation or the aforementioned dark spots usually went ignored when shaving with the easily-accessible razors. Amidst those unsolved problems, what's often forgotten is the importance of grooming in relation to how men, particularly men of color, who are reportedly more likely to have facial hair as well as buy facial products, present themselves to the world.
And so, Tristan Walker changed the game, eventually garnering support from John Legend, seeing his products in store shelves, and leading the charge for diversity in grooming and beyond. With Walker & Company, he is ensuring that men of color realize that they can shave. Whether or not they want to is – and should continue to be – a personal choice.
Tristan Walker founded grooming company Walker & Company in 2013, combining the knowledge that he'd gained from jobs at places like Twitter and Foursquare with his experience navigating the world of grooming as a black man. He was fueled not by the idea of some sort of specific, profitable product, but instead, by his experience.
"It took me a long time to realize that the only things I should be working on are the things about which I had a unique, authentic voice," Walker said.
Walker & Company is responsible for Bevel, a set of razors and shaving tools that Walker considers to be more of a general skincare brand that includes grooming products rather than a simple set of razors or shaving tools, in part because it is so specifically formulated for underrepresented skin types.
Walker hopes that with Bevel, as well as Walker & Company's brand of hair products called Form Beauty, he will "always make things that solve problems that folks of color suffer from."
This is a huge priority because, according to Walker, grooming allows men to put their best face forward to the world, helping them navigate it with confidence and a sense of empowerment.
For Walker, Bevel gives men of color the "ability to feel like first-class citizens" by saying goodbye to "packaging that's dirty or that has old-fashioned branding on it" and incorporating more modern, sleek colors and cool designs.
Instead, he'd like to create things that "inspire pride in picking [them] up off shelves," all made in the otherwise oft-ignored "spirit of dignity and care."
And according to Walker, "That's something we're doing uniquely different from everyone else."
In particular, Walker is focused on representation.
He poses a question: "When was the last time you've ever seen a black man shaving in an ad?"
As he expanded Bevel's reach, Walker sought to remedy the problem. Recently, Bevel released a series of videos called "Bevel Mirrors" and in each, they give men of color the opportunity to speak about their experiences shaving and what grooming means to them. Their answers are powerful, emotional, and thought-provoking, speaking to the blind spot in the grooming industry that has left so many men unable to truly put their best faces forward until now.
"Shaving felt like a daily indignity that I had to undergo," one subject named Kanyi says in his video. "Bevel means for me having more control over my self-expression, my best possible self."
Our newest campaign: "Bevel Mirrors" (link in bio) // 10 Authentic @Bevel customers sharing their stories of the shaving struggle pre-Bevel and what the Bevel brand and products means to them. This campaign is one of our best. Take a look! We hope you enjoy it. Why'd we do it? There's a stigma around shaving for men of color. Most men who look like me grow up scared of razors. The fear of bumps runs deep. Some 80% of black men and women suffer from shaving irritation. Bevel Mirrors is here to mitigate those fears, completely eradicate the shaving stigma and eventually make shaving a celebrated experience we all deserve. I believe it's important to see people who look like you in campaigns, full stop. I've started asking people how many times they've seen a black man shave and the answer is usually "never." Think about that. This campaign is the first of its kind. It's powerful.
A post shared by tristan walker (@tristanwalker) on Apr 11, 2018 at 9:05am PDT
In the end, Walker's creation has spoken to what he calls "the acute needs" of a severely underrepresented albeit large population – and the mission to remedy that has paid off in a big way so far. As of 2015, Bevel sat at an impressive 95 percent customer retention rate, according to Forbes. And in 2016, CNBC reported that Bevel saw a 103 percent sales growth, as well as over $33 million in investments.
@bevel Trimmer
A post shared by tristan walker (@tristanwalker) on Apr 29, 2018 at 7:48pm PDT
Bevel has become so synonymous with clean, fresh lines, smooth skin, and the ability to flatter texture hair that it's inspired meme-worthy Twitter shoutouts, as well as earning the praise of celebrities like the aforementioned Legend as well as the rapper Nas and actor Kofi Siriboe.
 @kofisiriboe with That #BevelBlade treatment on set for @queensugarown // #Repost @professionalcutz ・・・ Kofi's signature fade with the @bevel blade... that's a Major  #QueenSugar
A post shared by tristan walker (@tristanwalker) on Apr 24, 2018 at 11:31am PDT
And though Walker & Company has achieved so much in such a short amount of time, it's only the start.
As Walker continues to grow his latest venture, Code2040, which is an organization hoping to diversify the tech space by empowering and encouraging black and Latinx technologists and allies, he anticipates Bevel diving even deeper into candid discussions about the intersections of race, grooming, and what it all means through the scopes of past, present, and future.
Not only will "Bevel Mirrors" and "Bevel Classics," a series that explores the meanings and processes behind iconic haircuts, continue, they may expand or lead to even more.
And in any capacity that Bevel continues to grow as a brand and influence commercial change, Tristan Walker is happy to lead the way with his best face forward.
Face It
The "complete experience" begins with the starter kit, which gives buyers a safety razor, badger brush, 20 blades, priming oil, shaving cream, and restoring balm for $89.95. It includes components that neither depilatory or multi-blade kits come with.
Louis Baragona Louis is a New York-based writer focusing on style, gear and grooming
More From Grooming
The 10 Best Face Scrubs for Clearing Your Pores
What A Barber Thinks When You Sit in His Chair
Buy Sunscreen From Target and Get a Free Gift Card
7 Manscaping Tricks Every Guy Should Know
The 10 Best Sunscreens for Every Guy's Lifestyle
9 Tips to Protect Your Skin At the Gym
The 12 Best Deodorants For Men
How to Get a Perfect Shave
The 11 Best Electric Shavers On the Market Now
The 7 Best Hair Conditioners for Men
The Best Razor Blade For Your Skin Type
Grooming Problem: Travel Razor
These 2 Incredible Razors Are Both On Sale
Why Your Beard May Grow In a Different Color Than Your Hair
The 6 Best Razors for Men