Gregg Garrett is captain of the Comp-Tac shooting team.

When you're the boss, you don't have to win all the titles. Photo courtesy of Comp-Tac

And it's not because he's won a ton of titles. It's not because he's one of the top shooters in the country. It's actually for the most obvious of reasons. You see, Gregg Garrett's other title at Comp-Tac Victory Gear is... President. Garrett founded the company back in 2001 after more and more people came to him to purchase the kydex holsters he had been making for himself. Today Comp-Tac has more than 30 employees who sell, make and ship over 30 varieties of holsters for the competition and tactical markets, from which Comp-Tac derives its name. So, when you're the boss, you get to make the rules and, you get to be Captain. As team captain, Garrett probably doesn't have much in the way of concern when it comes to carrying his team in competition considering his teammates are Comp-Tac employees Gordon Carrell and Randi Rogers. Gordon Carrell is one of a handful of Distinguished Masters in International Defensive Pistol Association competition and the recent winner of the ESP title at the IDPA European Championship in Italy, and Randi Rogers is, well, Randi Rogers...one of the best women shooters in America and simply brilliant on the range.

Always gathering data, Garrett talks holsters with noted expert Michael Bane during the IDPA reception at the 2012 NRA Show. Photo by P. Erhardt

Garrett doesn't have to worry about picking up titles with these two by his side at a match. They got that part covered for the boss, leaving him to do what guys like him do best - interact with customers and gather R&D feedback. It's that attention to the customer and their needs - along with really solid holster design - that has made Comp-Tac one of the most popular holster brands, especially in IDPA. Starting way back in the late 1990s, Garrett realized through his own personal experience the need for a strong functioning concealed carry holster. Once he made a holster for himself, the others guys on the executive protection team he was working on turned to Garrett for a holster just like his. That intimate understanding of what the end user required in a good concealed carry holster has been one of the foundational elements of Comp-Tac's success. As more and more people began to purchase Comp-Tac holsters, Garrett's consumer feedback loop grew exponentially. At shooting matches he spent more time observing his gear on a shooter, how it fit and preformed, than gaming out stages. "Sometimes I'd be taking notes in my head and someone would ask me if something was wrong because I had been staring at their gear," Garrett recalls. "I asked if he or she would change anything about the holster and most said no and that they were very pleased with the gear." "Occasionally I would get a great suggestion. When they would ask why I wanted to know, I'd smile and say 'I made that. Thanks for your business and support.'" To Garrett, it's competition that offers one of the best test beds for his gear. This probably explains why Comp-Tac has been such a dedicated sponsor of the shooting sports and matches like the upcoming IDPA Carolina Cup, where Garrett, Carrell and Rogers will be competing. Over the years Comp-Tac has managed to find it's way to the 'secret sauce' of business success in the firearms industry. Garrett already had an eye for design and a commitment to quality. Remember, the company was born out of his own frustration with substandard equipment. But it was his focus on customer service that really set the company on the path to success. Garrett believes that customer service is the Holy Grail in business and he's worked hard to make Comp-Tac one of the most customer-centric holster makers in the market.

Arguably Comp-Tac's flagship holster, the MTAC reflects the "quality, price, service" ethos Garrett insists upon in each product. Photo courtesy of Comp-Tac

In fact, order a holster from Comp-Tac today - like right now - and you're likely to see it made to order and shipped to you in the next three days, if not sooner. If that means the guys in the factory have to stay late to get your order out the door, that's exactly what they're going to do. And don't be surprised if one of those staying late is Garrett. In the early days of Comp-Tac, when it really was a one-man operation, Garrett would be at work from 7:00am to just before midnight when he'd leave to get that day's orders dropped off at the main postal facility so the customer's order shipped the day it was taken. Occasionally there is a downside to fast turnaround as Garrett noted. "This sometimes caused problems when customers called the next day to add a magazine pouch to their order and I had to tell them that their order was made and shipped last night." What Comp-Tac lost in add-on sales they probably more than made up for in customer loyalty. Industry leaders like Frank and Pete Brownell at Brownells and Larry Potterfield at MidwayUSA can quote you chapter and verse on the benefits of the service, service, service approach Garrett has instilled at Comp-Tac.

It's likely a third of the Carolina Cup shooters will have this logo on their holster.

That means when Gregg Garrett, President of Comp-Tac and Captain of Team Comp-Tac, hits the ground in Oxford, N.C. for the Carolina Cup you can just about guarantee he'll be eyeballing a lot of competitors' holsters to spot his customers and get their input. And that's likely to be a lot of the shooters. When I said that Comp-Tac was popular in IDPA I wasn't kidding. The equipment survey from the 2011 IDPA World Shoot showed that 30.4% of the shooters used a Comp-Tac holsters. Only one company had more shooters (31.7%) and that is one that Garrett will readily tell you he both respects and admires - Blade-Tech. Who will win the holster market share contest at the Carolina Cup is hard to say but you can be assured that Garrett will be busy doing everything he can to make sure it's Comp-Tac. And he can do that because he's the captain. And besides, he's got Gordon Carrell and Randi Rogers to cover those shooting titles and Team Comp-Tac podium appearances. - Paul Erhardt, Editor, the Outdoor Wire Digital Network Got shooting sports news? Send us an email at info@shootingwire.com.