Women are reshaping the gun industry

Women are buying a record number of pistols. In particular, I buy weapons that are small enough to hide.

However, they are dissatisfied with the lack of firearm accessories that cater to them. As a result, some companies have set up their own companies to tailor their products for women.

“I wondered where the women’s things are,” said Lorelei Faye of Boise, Idaho.

Faye was unable to find a suitable holster when he obtained his hidden carry license. Her mother taught her to sew, so she made herself: an elastic belly band with a holster for her Sig Sauer semi-automatic pistol. There is also a pocket for storing two backup magazines.

When her friends turned to it, they also wanted it. So she sewed some corset-style holsters together and went on sale in 2014.

Faye called her company Hidden mistake..

“When I started selling my stuff eBay ((((EBAY)., It started selling like pancakes, “said Faye, who put up a lace line of corsets with holsters called Hidden Heat for $ 30 to $ 50. As soon as I make them, they are immediately outside the door. ”

Faye She said she hired seven sewers as her income rose to $ 200,000 in 2015. She earned more than half of that in the last three months of this year.

She said orders surged after the shootings San Bernardino killed 14 people During December.

“Women want to protect themselves,” Faye said. “There is so much madness going on right now. Men and women don’t want to be victims.”

Last month, when she was exhibiting her products at the National Shooting Sports Foundation’s SHOT Show in Las Vegas, she had to temporarily stop accepting new orders because her sewers couldn’t keep up with demand.

Fay wasn’t the only female entrepreneur at SHOT Show to meet the growing market.

Related: Gunmakers Streamline Pistols for Carrying Women

Self-defense is a serious business for Leslie Dietz, the founder of a gun-centric handbag startup. Hidden carry..She also co-owns her and her husband Sharp Shooters USA Shooting range in Roswell, Georgia.

When she described a tragic assault during a college freshman, being in the gun business was a “hit near home,” Dietz said. “He kidnapped me, stabbed me, and pointed me at a gun.”

Deets sells handbags containing hidden holsters Small pistolLike her pink Walther PPK .380 semi-automatic, she can be accessed with a “crossbody” draw from her purse. She designs purses, satchels, clutches and compacts to be fashionable and practical, giving you quick access to hidden guns. Taser And pepper spray.

Related: Guns, Guns: 2015 was a record year for the FBI’s background checks

“We want to strengthen your wardrobe, not disturb it,” she said. “We don’t want everyone to know our business.”

The price is highest at $ 229, but she offers a free replacement for a woman who shoots through a bag to protect herself from assault.

Tessa Renault, an obstetrician and gynecologist in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, also operates in self-defense. She got a hidden carry permit when she was working in the ER because she wanted to arm her when her shift ended dawn and she walked towards the car alone. ..

But she didn’t know how to make a bulky holster Smith & Wesson ((((SWHC). 1911 semi-automatic pistol and her Ruger ((((RGR).SP101 revolver.

“I searched for weeks but couldn’t find the right one,” she said. “I was so frustrated that I decided to come up with something myself.”

She designed a line of flexible lace wraps that are fastened to the body with metal clips, like an ace bandage. At her booth at SHOT Show, a mummy-like lace-wrapped mannequin was fitted with replica guns on her torso, arms, and legs.

Related: How Iron Pipeline pours guns into cities with strict gun control

Renault has begun Deadly race About two years ago, my husband Mike and a former sheriff, a stay-at-home dad for six children. They said they sold 1,000 products last year and made a total of $ 25,000 in revenue in December alone. This was their best month. The price of the lap holster is $ 58.

At SHOT Show, they launched a new men’s rap holster, sanslace. However, Renault said it has already sold many lace wraps to men.

“I’m wearing a race,” Mike said. “It’s hidden. I’m enough to wear it.”

–Abigail Brooks contributed to this report.

CNNMoney (Las Vegas) February 2, 2016 First Edition: 10:46 AM ET