[vorpalhex]

But even those cases where the beard products are on wire shelves with minimalistic old school labels, that's still just a marketing trick where someone did analysis and thought that strategy would be better for their demographic.

If you want to escape infantilisation, you need to in many ways escape consumerism and go back to the days of just whipping up your own beard oils.

[tomc1985]

Exactly. That popular, cute 'craft' style is winning out because it resonates with the target audience. (Same with that popular, functional aesthetic you describe.)

I guess I am against the softening of traditionally 'hard' things. Painful to watch our world (even software!) devolve into bright colors and cute mascots.

One could also interpret this phenomenon as young adults refusing to grow up -- hanging on to childish symbolism concomitant with the rest of millennials' (economically necessary) delayed development into adulthood.

And for the record I am (unwillingly) part of the millennial set and do not have a beard.