Florence, 1948. Italy is rebuilding. A small family laboratory on the edge of the city is experimenting with a formula that would become one of Italy’s most iconic shaving products. The product they produce — a pre-shave cream that softens the beard, tightens the skin, and makes the blade feel like it's gliding rather than dragging — will become one of the most beloved grooming products in the world.
That product is the Proraso Pre-Shave Cream. And the story behind it is one of the great ones in men's grooming.
A Florentine Family Business
The Martelli family has been in the grooming business since 1908, when Ludovico Martelli founded his company in Florence, initially distributing perfumery products before developing his own formulations. It was Ludovico's son Piero who, in the early 1930s, began developing the formulas that would later become Proraso. It started with a pre-shave preparation that barbers across Italy quickly adopted as indispensable.
The name Proraso is derived from the Italian pro raso — "for the shave." It is exactly what it says: a product built for one purpose, executed to a standard that has remained remarkably consistent.
By 1948, Proraso was an officially registered brand, and the Martelli family expanded the range into a complete wet-shaving system. The colour-coded product lines became a signature: Green for the classic eucalyptus and menthol formula. White for sensitive skin. Red for dry skin. Blue for protective and moisturising shaving care. The company is now run by the fourth generation of the Martelli family. The mission remains unchanged: professional, quality products that deliver a pleasurable and impeccable shave.
What Makes Proraso Different
In a market crowded with products that claim barbershop heritage, Proraso has something most brands cannot manufacture: actual barbershop heritage. The brand spent its formative decades working directly with Italian barbers — listening, refining, iterating based on real professional feedback in real working barbershops.
The eucalyptus and menthol formula that anchors the green line is worth dwelling on. Eucalyptus oil is traditionally associated with cleansing and refreshing properties. Menthol creates the cooling, tightening sensation that prepares skin for a blade and makes the shave feel clean and refreshing. These are not trendy ingredients added for marketing appeal. They are ingredients with a functional purpose, blended into a formula refined across decades of use.
The Pre-Shave Ritual
The Proraso Pre-Shave Cream deserves its own moment because most men have never used one — and once they do, they can't imagine shaving without it.
Applied to damp skin before the shaving cream, the pre-shave cream softens the beard and creates an additional layer of protection between skin and blade. The result is less drag, less irritation, and a noticeably closer shave. It takes thirty seconds to apply. The difference it makes is not subtle.
If you currently experience any irritation, redness, or roughness after shaving, adding a pre-shave step is one of the most effective changes you can make to your routine — and Proraso's is the standard by which others are measured.
The Range at Gentleman & Son
Shaving Creams and Soaps
The shaving creams are the heart of the range — dense, slow-building lathers that provide genuine cushion and glide. The Classic Shaving Cream in eucalyptus and menthol is the entry point. It works with a brush for a traditional barbershop lather, or can be applied directly to the face for a brushless shave that still outperforms anything from a pressurised can.
The shaving soaps pair with a bowl and brush for men who enjoy the ritual as much as the result — working up a lather by hand, applying with the brush, taking the time to prepare properly.
Pre-Shave and Aftershave
The Pre-Shave Cream in the classic green formula is the one to start with. The aftershave balm and lotion close the routine — the balm for those who prefer a conditioning, alcohol-free finish; the lotion for those who want the traditional astringent sensation.
Beard Care
The beard range — beard oil, beard balm, beard shampoo, and moustache wax — brings the Proraso ingredient philosophy to facial hair. The Wood and Spice line, scented with cumin, saffron, cedar, and sandalwood, is the standout: complex, warm, and distinctly masculine without being aggressive.
Proraso in Australia
Worth noting for Australian customers: Proraso has been distributed in Australia since 1963 by Berman Trading, a family-owned company now in its third generation, founded in Melbourne by Umberto Manco — himself Italian-born, with a personal connection to the brand. It is, fittingly, another family business carrying the Proraso tradition.
Why Proraso Belongs at Gentleman & Son
Proraso is the brand that answers the question every man eventually asks: what does a proper shave actually feel like? The answer, for generations of Italian men and barbers, has been this. Clean, close, refreshing, and repeatable — a ritual that makes the daily shave something to look forward to rather than get through.
Four generations of a Florentine family have held that standard. It shows in every jar.
