Easy to get caught up in it as a newb (can i not be newb after 3 months btw? How about experienced beginner?), and you miss the real gems out there.
So i live in the uk, and it would appear that the european wet shave market is much more alive than the US market. I discovered this because i found a place online that was importing euro products to the states and was charging like 7 pounds for things like Boots shave soap, Ingram shave cream and palmolive shave cream. This stuff costs like 2 pounds here.
Was i missing something?
Yes i was actually, in all my newb enthusiasm i missed the everyday stuff that i can buy in independent chemists. In fact the boots soap was my first soap, bought with a cheap brush and i discounted it as soon as i got my Trumpers cream. The fact i wasn't getting a good lather was way more to do with me being a beginner than the quality. You know what? it's not bad at all, good lather, nice smell etc etc. The Palmolive and Ingrams were insanely good for 2 quid.
And there's a whole bunch more stuff out there to try.