Should He Shave or Should He Grow?

STERLING, Ill., Nov. 8, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- With the never-ending saga between Conan O'Brien and Jay Leno picking back up on November 8, the public has already declared a partial winner: Conan's beard. According to a recent survey by Wahl Trimmers on which talk show personalities would look best with facial hair as a permanent feature, almost twice as many think Conan trumps Leno (13 percent vs. 7 percent).

"Not only has Conan been out of work, but he's made it very evident by making the recession beard part of his look," said Nick Burns, author of The Bearded Gentleman and Wahl facial hair expert/historian. "The beard has become a great sidekick to Conan's recognizable red, Flock of Seagulls-esque haircut. Sticking to his look and incorporating a beard has done wonders to help him continue connecting with younger guys who can relate to dodging the razor to avoid the day-to-day maintenance of shaving."

Perhaps due to his roots in New York and Boston, residents of the Northeast are most supportive of Conan maintaining at least some peach fuzz on his face at all times (17 percent, vs. 12 percent of the rest of the country). The coveted 18-34-year-old demographic feels more strongly than those 35 and older about preferring many TV hosts being far less clean-shaven, including George Lopez (17 percent vs. 8 percent), Jimmy Kimmel (13 percent vs. 4 percent), Stephen Colbert (10 percent vs. 4 percent) and Jon Stewart (10 percent vs. 3 percent).

Since his departure from NBC, Conan has visibly been in deep follicle exploration, primarily wearing a Full Beard. However, Conan is not alone. In fact, about 13 million men wear some form of a beard during the year. Other celebrities, too, have been spotted wearing beards recently, including actors Jon Hamm, Joaquin Phoenix and even Zac Efron and professional athletes such as Randy Moss and LeBron James.

So, what is it about the beard that makes it a popular choice? According to The Bearded Gentleman: The Styling Guide to Shaving Face, the Full Beard is perhaps the easiest style to grow; it just takes patience—and ample whiskers. The Full Beard is exactly that, one that covers the mustache, cheeks, chin and neck. It can be worn at a variety of lengths to various degrees of fullness—from close-cropped to a fuller look worthy of Jolly Old Saint Nick. Guys with sparse whiskers or barren patches will have a difficult time cultivating the necessary follicles to create the look. The Full Beard can also be tailored to suit any face shape. While easy to grow, it takes some skill to effectively maintain. Here are a few tips:

• Avoid shaving for three weeks to see if your beard has any patchy or sparse areas.
• While continuing to grow your beard for several weeks, you may begin to add some desired shape and trim the edges along the neck and cheeks if you so choose.
• Using an electric trimmer, trim away the extra long whiskers to create a uniform length on your cheeks.
• On the neck, create a subtle border where your whiskers become visibly sparse. Leaving these strays behind will make you look unkempt (or like a vagrant).

If your desire for more facial hair knowledge is still burning, visit WahlNation.com. The site offers the opportunity to ask questions to Wahl's facial hair experts, explore a bevy of styles in the Encyclopedia of Styles and read all things facial hair at the Experts & Gentleman blog.

For more information, visit www.wahlnation.com and learn more about facial hair at Facebook and Twitter.

Methodological Notes:

The Wahl Facial Hair Survey was conducted by Kelton Research between April 30 and May 5, 2010 using an email invitation and an online survey. Quotas are set to ensure reliable and accurate representation of the entire U.S. population ages 18 and over. Results of any sample are subject to sampling variation. The magnitude of the variation is measurable and is affected by the number of interviews and the level of the percentages expressing the results.

In this particular study, the chances are 95 in 100 that a survey result does not vary, plus or minus, by more than 3.1 percentage points from the result that would be obtained if interviews had been conducted with all persons in the universe represented by the sample.

About Wahl Trimmers

A quarter-century ago, Wahl recognized the desire for well kept facial hair and created the trimmer category. The Wahl Groomsman was the world's first battery operated facial hair trimmer, and featured the same type of blade quality that defined Wahl clippers. And for the past 25 plus years, that innovation has continued, with Wahl developing trimmers for specific facial hair styles – beard, goatee and mustache – and other variations including ear/nose, body grooming and all-in-one. Most recently, Wahl introduced the first trimmer to harness the power of lithium ion that continues a legacy of superior trimming innovation.

About Wahl

Now in its 91st year, Wahl Clipper Corporation is an international industry leader in the manufacturing of products for the professional beauty and barber salon trade, consumer personal care and animal grooming.  Headquartered in Sterling, Ill., Wahl currently employs some 2,000 people worldwide. Wahl products are available in 165 countries around the world.  For more information about Wahl, visit www.wahl.com.

SOURCE Wahl Trimmers