A man in Bogota, Colombia, filmed himself shooting his wife as a promotion for his bulletproof clothing.
Miguel Caballero, 49, aimed his .38-caliber pistol, took a deep breath, and fired a shot at his wife Carolina Ballesteros.
He looks visibly rattled as he fires the bullet into her stomach. After he walked off his nerves.
‘Now I know why doctors should never operate on their own family members,’ he said.
The producer of high-fashion bulletproof clothing is trying to break into the U.S. market.
He’s shot more than 230 volunteers to prove how effective the clothing is.
Caballero’s clothing line MC Armor is based in Colombia newly available in Miami. The 25-year-old company came to Miami three months ago. Ballesteros is leading the project.
Miguel Caballero, 49, aimed his .38-caliber pistol, took a deep breath, and fired a shot at his wife Carolina Ballesteros to prove that his bulletproof clothing is effective
Caballero started a club for the more than 230 people he has shot
When Caballero started the enterprise in the 1990s, Colombia was one of the most murderous countries in the hemisphere
Caballero has shot his wife twice in the past nine years.
‘I swore to myself I would never do that again,’ Caballero told SFGate. ‘But she’s trying to open up the American market and I’m helping her in every way I can.’
Caballero’s clothing line is being sold in gun shops — 10 in Florida and others in Texas and California.
The company’s flagship product is a patented lightweight and flexible bulletproof tank top that can be worn discreetly under regular clothes.
The shirt comes with different levels of protection, but the most basic model weighs about 2.4 pounds and is rated to stop .38-caliber, .22-caliber and 9 mm bullets. It costs $495.
Ballesteros has been splitting her time between Colombia and the United States.
‘We’ve been selling at gun stores, to Uber drivers, to doctors, lawyers, professors,’ she said. ‘People have been very interested in the product.’
The brand MC Armor is based in Bogota, Colombia, where it was founded in the 1990s
When Caballero started the enterprise in the 1990s, Colombia was one of the most murderous countries in the hemisphere. Almost everyone seemed to be a potential target.
He produced bulletproof Bible covers for threatened priests, armored backpacks for school children, and once, as a special order, he made a bulletproof kimono.
Ballesteros is in charge of bringing the brand to the U.S. market via Miami
But as Colombia has grown safer, Caballero has been forced to look abroad.
With sales of $25million last year, about 76 percent of his merchandise is exported.
‘If we had to depend on Colombia for business, we would have gone broke a while ago,’ Caballero said.
Now, violence-plagued Mexico and Central America are his top markets, but he also has distributors throughout Africa and the Middle East. The company recently opened two stores in Iraq.
Caballero’s 4,500-sq-ft factory on the outskirts of Bogota employs 470 people. It churns out the reinforced fashion wear and more standard flak jackets and protective gear for the armed forces, including visors, riot gear and heavily armored mine-clearing outfits.
The U.S. market could be a game changer for the company. Home to anywhere from 270million to 310million guns and more than 6,100 gun stores, the country is a mecca for anyone selling weapon accessories or ballistic products.
Caballero said he expects the United States eventually will be the company’s largest market.
As part of his marketing strategy, Caballero has shot hundreds of people — journalists, his lawyer, most of his employees, potential clients — to prove how effective his vests are.
He recently shot street magician David Blaine during one of his live stage shows.
He’s hoping his harmless execution routine (it’s performed with a slightly thicker vest so there’s no bruising or welts) will eventually get him into Guinness Book of World Records.