Safariland Unveils ICOG-XS

For much of its 62 years in business, Safariland has been meeting the needs of law enforcement across the country by providing safe and functional products that officers wore both on and off duty. During most of that time, Safariland wasn’t necessarily focused on the needs of the everyday concealed carry community. That changed, however, when the company introduced its INCOG line of inside-the-waistband (IWB) holsters.

“From Safariland’s perspective, INCOG opened many new doors,” says David Higginbotham, product marketing manager for Safariland. “While the retention holster is still the crux of this business, EDC has become the biggest brand funnel. Stores that had little interest in Safariland, or no demand for OWB [outside-the-waistband] holsters, made shelf space for INCOG that has continued to grow into the rest of the line.”

 
And retailers can get ready to open up even more shelf space this year with the introduction of Safariland’s newest variation of the line, the INCOG-XS.
“Safariland is committed to safe and responsible carry for everyone,” Higginbotham says. “The company’s most iconic holsters were designed to be carried on duty belts. This shift shows our commitment to a much wider segment of the industry.”

When it was introduced three years ago, the INCOG didn’t necessarily revolutionize IWB carry; it simply made it more accessible to the growing number of people who were looking for a practical way to carry IWB.

 
“Safariland partnered with Haley Strategic Partners to bring INCOG-X into wide distribution,” Higginbotham says. “INCOG-X builds on a holster line that reset IWB carry more than a decade ago. Travis Haley’s design had evolved, and HSP sought to find a brand partner for manufacturing that could both refine that vision and make it available to anyone looking for the versatility and intentionality of a well-crafted IWB design. HSP and Safariland have taken a purpose-built design and made it available everywhere holsters are sold.”
From a retail perspective, the result of this collaboration were astounding.

 
“The INCOG line was received exceptionally well. No hyperbole,” Higginbotham says. “Retailers want a holster company to provide a complete line, and existing Safariland customers wanted a true AIWB [appendix inside-the-waistband holster].”

The INCOG-X provides for both needs with its dual-clip construction specifically designed for AIWB carry. The holster is created to carry an extra magazine, lights, and other accessories and is manufactured on a scale that it could be sold to retailers across the country.

 
The new INCOG-XS evolves the line even further with a single-clip construction made for smaller guns.

 
“XS offers ambidexterity—key for retailers—and a smaller clip design for those who carry smaller guns or those who want to shift away from the AIWB position,” Higginbotham says.
Higginbotham stresses that the new priority Safariland is placing on the everyday conceal carry community doesn’t diminish its commitment to the law enforcement officers it’s been servicing for decades.

 
“They don’t cancel each other out,” he says. “Almost every cop carries a backup concealed. Sometimes two.”

With the launch of INCOG-X and the new introduction of the XS, Safariland is giving officers—and everyone else who conceal carries—more options that fit their carry and preferred draw style. And, as all retailers know, more options typically means more satisfied customers.