... in response to OK Men....I'm Going In, posted by JunFan68 on Apr 5, 2001Designer bulletproof clothing a big seller in Colombia
The Miguel Caballero factory makes armored blazers, overcoats, windbreakers, vests, sweaters, T-shirts and raincoats
March 31, 2001
Web posted at: 8:29 PM EST (0129 GMT)
(AP) -- Miguel Caballero steps up to his attorney and fires a .38-caliber revolver at his abdomen.
The lawyer, Wilson Sanchez, recoils from the impact, but feels only a thump against his midriff. He's wearing an armored raincoat manufactured by Caballero, who has just demonstrated it can stop bullets.
With violence in this South American country continuing unabated, Caballero has built a booming business making armored clothing. He says his sales doubled last year to 2.2 billion Colombian pesos ($1 million).
Other companies sell armored vests and the like, but Miguel Caballero Ltd. is one of only a handful specializing in armored clothing for the fashion conscious.
Caballero's sales are driven in Colombia by a soaring homicide rate, 11 times greater per capita than that of the United States.
"People are taking more precautions than ever, and we're profiting from that," said Caballero, who began his firm in 1993 with a loan from his mother.
Caballero makes believers of even the most skeptical customers by blasting away at family, friends and employees.
"He shoots all the people who work for him," Sanchez proudly proclaims after surviving yet another test of the ready-to-wear survival gear. "It's part of the job."
Caballero got the idea for his venture as a university student in Bogota. He noticed that campus security guards had to remove shirts and jackets to strap on bulletproof vests underneath -- which could be avoided if the clothes themselves were armored.
Caballero sold his first product, a bulletproof sweater, to Bogota businessman Hugo Giraldo in 1993.
"It was a psychological relief," Giraldo says. "I could walk through the streets in peace."
Miguel Caballero Ltd. now makes bulletproof jackets, vests, sweaters, T-shirts and raincoats, with prices from 550,000 Colombian pesos ($250) to 3.3 million Colombian pesos ($1,500). The tailored clothing is lined with Aramida, a European-made synthetic fiber similar to Kevlar.
Caballero's designs are not likely to show up on the catwalks during fashion week in Paris or Milan. But his catalog has a range of men's classics: dark blue blazers, gray knee-length wool overcoats, nylon windbreakers and T-shirts. His clients say they're more interested in stopping bullets than attracting compliments.
Caballero uses one or two layers of Aramida for those seeking protection from handguns. To stop rounds from more powerful weapons, he uses up to four layers, but he says there's nothing strong enough to withstand bursts from an assault rifle.
Caballero estimates he has sold about 10,000 items, and says they have excelled in trials by fire. Eight of his clients have been shot and survived because of the armored clothing, he claims.
Many of Caballero's clients are top politicians, increasingly targeted by armed factions involved in Colombia's 37-year civil conflict.
But others are customers simply worried about the crime rate, such as Tony Sanchez, a resident of the capital who bought a bulletproof leather jacket in December after being robbed at gunpoint.
"It's one way of minimizing the risk of living in this crazy place," Sanchez says. "It's not very comfortable, but it looks good and I feel a lot safer."
Just Teasing Buddy, ;-) Houndog
