A Channing Tatum-backed start-up reflects rise in manscaping – why shaving and waxing below the belt will continue to grow

Men’s grooming has undergone enormous change and men are more engaged than ever as they seek ways to look good – including shaving and waxing below the belt

Channing Tatum-backed Manscaped is one brand seeking to ride the wave of male hair removal, and expects revenue to grow to over US$500 million in 2023

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Mixed Martial artist Max Holloway using a Manscaped product to shave his body. The men’s grooming start-up expects to have revenues of over US$500 million by 2023.

Published: 7:15am, 7 Feb 2022

Gone are the days when a quick jump in the shower followed by a brief spray of deodorant was all guys needed before heading out of the house. Male grooming has taken off in recent years, with products for men cropping up on shelves and online.

Manscaped has taken this a step further.

The men’s grooming start-up backed by Hollywood actor Channing Tatum is all about tidying up your nether regions, and announced in November 2021 it was going public by merging with blank-cheque firm Bright Lights Acquisition Corp in a deal valuing the company at US$1 billion. A blank-cheque firm is a shell company set up to merge with a private one.

Founded in 2016, Manscaped specialises in “below the waist grooming for men” and intends to “address all of men’s self-care needs” in the future, according to Business Insider. In the past 12 months, it has generated US$285 million in revenue, a figure it expects to grow to over US$500 million in 2023 thanks to international growth and product expansion.

Channing Tatum, a backer of Manscaped, in a still from the movie Magic Mike XXL.

There is an increasing number of personal hygiene, hairstyling and skincare products aimed at men, but Manscaped found increasingly more men were paying attention to their hygiene and appearance below the belt, and made this their target market.