Chest protectors for people with breasts in fencing suck

My name is Veronica and I’ve been competing in Historical European Martial Arts for 4 years now. 

As a woman in this sport, it was immediately apparent that trying to find protective gear that fit me well and would protect me was like trying to find a needle in a haystack. Things like jackets and gloves were easier to find thanks to pushes by women who have been in the community longer, but there still isn’t a great chest protector option. 

My options when I was first looking was to purchase the “women’s” version of a chest protector which came with plastic cups that didn’t even come close to fitting my chest or purchasing the men’s version and getting crafty. I had to put the men’s chest protector in the oven and then re-heat form it to my body before it even came close to not literally bruising me every time I used it.

Almost every person who I’ve talked to about this has complained that they can’t find something that works well. 

My background is in Product Design. I got my degree in Industrial Design from Georgia Tech and have been working as a professional designer for almost 10 years now.  I spent the majority of 2020-2021 designing, building and testing potential chest protector prototypes before coming up with this one. 

In addition to creating 4 different prototypes, I’ve tested this product on myself as well as 5 other people to include their thoughts, feedback, and concerns. This product that I’m trying to get made today is the product of all of that.

My hope is that this campaign can be successful so we can increase access to protective equipment for curvier bodies and hopefully increase the accessibility of fencing and HEMA as a whole. I have a tester that actually purchased this chest protector from me to use in Modern Olympic Fencing and they LOVE it.

 

What We Need & What You Get

This chest protector is made of a black cotton cloth that’s two layered to help with structure and to try to have the least amount of impact on heat retention as possible. 

The plastic part of this chest protector will be made with polypropylene — a thermoplastic that has a high durability and impact resistance.

To pay for all of the raw materials, the apparel manufacturers, and the thermoplastic forming, I’ve estimated that I’ll need close to $50,000 for a minimum run.

A minimum run includes:

– 50 of each size of the fabric portion of the protector (S,M,L,XL)

– All of the notions that go into making 200 protectors (e.g. velcro, straps, etc.)

– 500 of the hard-shell plastic piece (this includes the initial tooling cost and raw materials for the plastic; This is the minimum run for the manufacturer I’ve contacted.)

That’s a lot of money, but unfortunately this is the world we live in.

I already have apparel manufacturers and thermoplastic manufacturers lined up and have quotes from them to get it started. 

If we cannot reach this goal, I’ll be working to find additional investors as well as funding this with my own (very limited) funds. I really want this to succeed and to get this product out to as many people as possible.

 

The Impact

Getting this product out into the world is a massive goal of mine. Selfishly so that I can finally have a chest protector that fits me, but also so that an entire group of people can have protective gear made for them specifically.

So far women have been an afterthought in gear designing and production; I’m aiming to change that.

If you’ve gotten this far and aren’t convinced, I’ve been wearing my final prototype of this chest protector that I made myself for almost a year now. It has tanked hits through 5 different Open Longsword Tournaments, 3 different Women’s Longsword Tournaments, and thrice weekly free fencing sessions at my club.

 

Risks & Challenges

I’ve been working hard to put all of this together and get my ducks in a row before launching this campaign. 

As a professional designer that has worked on a multitude of products and companies over my career, I know how to launch a product successfully. 

The biggest challenge will be reaching my funding goal. 

Right now the biggest cost driver to make these protectors is the plastic manufacturing. I’ve got one lined up that I can use, but during the course of this campaign I will be working to find a cheaper option that still maintains the quality and durability of the one I’ve got quotes from currently. 

 

Other Ways You Can Help

If you don’t want to purchase a chest protector or its too expensive at the current moment, I would really love if you could contribute at a smaller level (I’ve got stickers!) and to share this campaign as far as wide as you can. Send it to your coaches, send it to your local fencing clubs, send it to your local Modern Olympic Fencing chapter!

I’ve designed this with HEMA in mind because that’s the sport I do, but it works for all sports that need chest protection!