Alien Gear Holsters is an American holster manufacturer that makes concealed carry holsters used for personal defense. The company started in Arkansas and has since relocated to Post Falls, Idaho in 2016. History and development Alien Gear Holsters started when Thomas Tedder couldn't find a handgun holster he genuinely wanted to carry a pistol in, and started to dabble in holster design. Eventually, he found a design that he was willing to concealed carry with, and began producing and selling holsters initially on a small scale. The operation began in his kitchen but eventually moved to his shed per his wife's request. Alien Gear Holsters finally relocated to Hayden, Idaho in 2013. The holster company that began with just a few hundred dollars of leather and plastic, grew to employ hundreds of employees. They consider themselves a "springboard company," wherein they'll promote internally to give people a shot at a better skillset. Tedder realized that the most potential lay in the hybrid holster design, which mates a hard plastic retention shell molded for the gun it would hold to a backing platform made of a durable cloth such as leather. Some of the weaknesses he noted in competing products were flimsy materials and poor handgun retention. For instance, several holster companies tell customers to use a heat gun or hair dryer on a holster if it doesn't hold a gun tight enough. One of the goals of Alien Gear's inception was to address the weaknesses of typical holster design. Whereas the typical hybrid holster with a leather backer would employ an 8-ounce leather, Alien Gear uses a 12-ounce leather backer. Instead of using a thin shell made of thermoplastic acrylic polyvinyl chloride such as Kydex, a thicker shell was devised for greater durability. Another common feature of Alien Gear's holsters is the use of hex screws and crushable rubber washers to attach the retention shell to the holster. Many competing companies use rivets, which are non-adjustable. Belt clips on the inside-the-waistband holster were also made adjustable so the holster would ride at the height and tilt angle that customers preferred. Another innovation of Alien Gear was the universal shell system, as the same holster shell can be placed on any backer made by Alien Gear. Product evolution Cloak Tuck Original and Cloak Slide The initial product offering, the Cloak Tuck, used a leather backer and Boltaron thermoplastic shell. This was