On February 21, 2009, Lou Alessi, one of the top holster makers in the world passed away. He was located in a town near me and I owned several of his holsters. He was not cheap but top quality holster work never is and I was willing to pay the price.
Lou was a friend of law enforcement officers all over the place. Much of the leather gear on my duty belt has his stamp on it including the duty holster for my Glock 22. When I was issued my duty belt, it was much too long for my comfort. I was having difficulty fitting all the items on the belt that I needed. The extra leather wrapping around me made sliding some tight fitting items to their appropriate positions almost impossible. Lou, the gentleman that he was, took my belt, trimmed it, sewed it, and finished it off. All for no cost to me...That is the type of man that he was.
After his passing, I was unsure whether or not the company would go on. Every time I passed the shop in Niagara Falls Blvd, the closed sign was out. Then, one day, the Alessi Holsters window signage was gone. Well, after some research on the internet, I discovered that the company did forge on. I contacted the company via e-mail to inquire about a holster that I had ordered some time prior to Lou's death. I received a nice reply from Tom Kulwicki. He stated that they did not have my order but would put it on the list.
I recieved a call yesterday from Alessi Holsters to state that my holster was complete and available for pickup or they could ship it if I would like.
I made the short drive out to their new location on Walden Ave. and met with Tom Kulwicki. He truly is a gentleman and a nice guy. I also met his daughter who was working in the office. Tom gave me a tour of the new facility. In addition to the original industrial sewing machine they own, he showed me the two brand new ones that they just purchased and have yet to unwrap. My son thought all the gun blanks hanging on the wall that they use for holster forming were neat (as well as the businesses door buzzer much to my dismay).
The holster I ordered was for my Glock 27. It is called the CQC-S. It is a belt slide type holster that allows you to snap the holster on to your belt instead of threading your belt through the holster slots...Much more convenient than using a belt slide.
Tom must have learned something from Lou because the holster is top quality. The quality that I would expect from a holster with the Alessi Holsters stamp on it. The gun fits as expected and the holster hugs my hip in a way that a fine holster should. I will call on Tom again when the time comes to add another holster to my stable. My 1911 might need one soon...I am not too happy with the Galco that I purchased...Hmmmm.
Check out the website at:
www.alessigunhosters.comYou will find a little article about Lou on the site as well as a letter from his wife, Idamarie.
Lou was a class act and it seems that Tom is carrying on in that tradition.
