Terrigal firefighter Ben Ziekenheiner face of Gillette’s new razor SkinGuard
He’s the best Gillette can get — Terrigal firey and personal trainer Ben Ziekenheiner teams up with the shaving giant to promote its new razor.
He’s the `fired up’ personal trainer, firefighter and former top class athlete — and now Ben Ziekenheiner is the face of Gillette’s first new razor specifically designed for sensitive skin.
And given his work with men’s mental health and developing positive body image attitudes in young people, it’s a role that suits him down to the skin.
Ziekenheiner, of Terrigal, said a little known fact was urban firefighters had to shave before every shift.
“It’s a requirement that we be clean shaven for our breathing apparatus masks to have a tight seal on our faces,” the 44-year-old said.
That’s why the global shaving brand has turned to firefighters to promote it’s new SkinGuard razor.
New research commissioned by Gillette has found 1.2 million Australian men were growing beards because of delicate skin, with 52 per cent admitting they shaved less often than they wanted because of redness, scale, itch, rashes, bumps, tightness and irritation.
The research was released to highlight men’s skin sensitivity, which was often neglected in
conversation by self-conscious men.
When he’s not fighting fires Ziekenheiner, of Terrigal, runs a personal training business, which focuses on mental resilience as much as physical fitness.
“Fired Up Fitness and Fired Up Fitness Kids, we run holistic programs for kids based on mental health awareness, prevention, strategies and thinking-before-acting, in line with Lifeline and Head Space at Gosford,” he said.
“Suicide is super high in the community and I’ve got a passion for helping kids, I’ve got a daughter, but also trying to take the pressure off men.
“That hegemonic masculinity role is there so we’re trying to bring awareness of that and have our actions based on kindness. If we’re kind to other people there can’t be a negative outcome.”
Ziekenheiner said when he was approached by Gillette and learned about the new razor, he was happy to put his face to it.
The SkinGuard razor uses a new film between two optimally spaced blades to smooth
and flatten the skin away from the razor blades during the shave.
Aesthetic Dermatology, Darlinghurst and St Vincent’s Private Hospital dermatologist Dr Liang Joo Leow said skin sensitivity among men was more common than people realised.
“Men often think skin sensitivity is the result of genetics or something they simply have no control over,” she said.
“They may often treat the symptoms rather than address the cause, unaware that the problem is often a direct consequence of shaving.”
She said various factors could worsen skin sensitivity, such as different ingredients in skincare products and applying too many strokes or too much pressure while shaving.
It seems men may have also have further cause to worry, as more than four in 10 women say they would be put off dating someone with a beard or with skin sensitivities.
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