It can be easy to miss a trend, even one right in front of your face, until you stumble upon an important cultural artifact, sometimes buried in the most arcane place.

Proctor & Gamble issued its quarterly earnings reports in late October, and they were very bullish in almost all corners of the conglomerate. The weakest part of the company? Gillette shaving products. Go back one more quarter, and it’s dire. P&G wrote down the value of Gillette’s brand by $8 billion.