Cops Making Gear: The Zero Nine Holsters Story with Ryan Allen

Have you ever wondered who makes the gear that police officers use to stay safe? In this episode of Amateurs and Experts, Erica and Jessica talk to Ryan Allen. Ryan used to be a police officer, but now he owns a company called Zero Nine Holsters. He makes special cases for radios and tools right here in the USA. He also helps run a big training group called the OTOA (Ohio Tactical Officers Association).

The conversation then shifts to the OTOA, where Ryan details their mission to provide world-class training to not just SWAT, but every "tactically-minded" patrol officer.

He highlights the upcoming 2025 conference at Kalahari Resort, which attracts thousands of attendees from as far as Hawaii and Canada for training, networking, and a massive vendor show.

Links

• Zero Nine Holsters: — American-made duty gear and Kydex cases. (16:50)

• OTOA (Ohio Tactical Officers Association): — Training catalogs and conference registration. (16:22)

• Otis Technology: The booth hosting the podcast at SHOT Show 2025. (00:05)

• Lake Erie Arms: Mentioned for its indoor clay field training facility. (09:15)

Key Takeaways

• Identify the Gap: Zero Nine Holsters succeeded because they filled a specific need for better-designed duty equipment that big manufacturers ignored.

• Seek Quality over Compliance: Real-world survival depends on training that provides value, not just a certificate for an HR file.

• State Support is Crucial: Partnering with government offices like the Attorney General can provide life-saving education to those who can't afford it.

• Professionalism is for Everyone: Tactical thinking should be a standard for all first responders, including patrol, fire, and medics.

Key Words

Zero Nine Holsters, OTOA, Law Enforcement, Tactical Training, SHOT Show 2025, Kydex, Active Shooter Response, State Funded, Professionalism, Patrol Officer, Duty Gear, Ohio.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:05

Welcome to Amateurs and Experts. And of course, like every episode, we're laughing before we're starting. This is Shot Show 2025, and we're at the Otis Technology Booth, their 40th anniversary, beautiful podcast booth.

SPEAKER_01 0:20

Yes, it is the end of day two, and um we are a little, I don't know, goofy loopy.

SPEAKER_00 0:26

We may or may not know our names. But we do know our next guest. We are with Ryan Allen from Zero Nine Holsters. Welcome.

SPEAKER_02 0:37

Thank you very much for having me.

SPEAKER_00 0:38

Of course. We are super excited to have you here because A, we're gonna talk about Zero Nine Holsters.

SPEAKER_01 0:43

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 0:44

And then also Ryan is on the OTOA board, which stands for the Ohio Tactical Officers Association. That's right. And they are doing absolutely fantastic things, and we thought it would be really great to do a law enforcement appreciation episode. Yeah. Sounds like thank you very much. For sure, it's my pleasure. So, first, tell us about Zero9.

SPEAKER_02 1:07

So, Zero Nine Polsters is a uh law enforcement-owned small business. We make duty gear. Everything's made in the United States by cops for cops.

SPEAKER_01 1:17

Love that.

SPEAKER_02 1:18

Um, everything that we were using when we were both full-time cops um wasn't working for us. So we uh started messing around with kydex and vacuum forming and was able to kind of tool for cases that would carry the gear that we needed on duty. So um we we kind of upgrade duty gear from what we were always issued back in the day.

SPEAKER_01 1:40

I love that because um I worked for probation for many years. Okay, and our department just handed us stuff and said, this is what you're using.

SPEAKER_02 1:48

Oh, yeah, that's how it went.

SPEAKER_01 1:50

Yes. And so for you guys to kind of tweak it and make it better, that's the plan, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 1:56

Um we've had a lot of success. We're very humbled, everything's been going very well.

SPEAKER_00 2:00

So um but you've worked your ass off. And I will I'll because I've actually had the awesome opportunity to visit their facility, and it started in like a garage with like hand modeling the product, like to now them like mass-producing various types of units. That's correct. I mean, they've really truly grown from the ground up, and that's commendable because a lot of people, if it were easy, everybody would do it.

SPEAKER_02 2:25

Oh, well, that's true. And I won't say it wasn't a lot of work, but um we definitely enjoyed the process and we were able to do it while we were still police officers, so that kind of helped for a little while, and then it got to the point where we just couldn't do both anymore. So we both retired, and that's what we do full-time now.

SPEAKER_00 2:39

Nice. Well, and thank you for your service.

SPEAKER_02 2:41

I appreciate that.

SPEAKER_00 2:42

And to that, OTOA, which a lot of people do not realize unless you're an officer, that most states have tactical officer associations. So maybe give us a little bit of a background of what that is, and then specifically OTOA.

SPEAKER_02 2:59

Sure. So um most states, not every state, but most states have a group of individuals that support training for law enforcement. And um some states are have bigger organizations than others and um various different means, but we're we're fortunate that uh Pat Fiorelli back in the day took over the OTOA and really grew it into what it is now. Um so we're one of, if not the biggest, tactical officer association in the country, and um we we take that very seriously. Um, everything that we do is designed to help promote professionalism in policing. So we've got uh a whole catalog of classes that we do. We have over 40 red team instructors at this point and uh full-time staff that is just dedicated to supporting the mission. So um we have grown it from a uh like a club or a fraternal association to uh one of the most prestigious training organizations in the country. And our mission is to get the best police training to police officers, corrections officers, firemen even, uh, that we can possibly do.

SPEAKER_00 4:12

And a lot, because a lot of people, because it's the name is Tactical Association, they assume you've got to be tactical SWAT, but it really is for any level.

SPEAKER_02 4:23

You're completely correct. Uh that's been one of our big focuses for the last five years or so is to try to get the message out there that it's not just for SWAT. Uh we actually have several programs right now, some of which are funded by the state of Ohio, so it's free training for officers throughout the state, and it's directed to be a tactically minded patrol officer. So a lot of what we're doing now is for every cop and not just SWAT officers.

SPEAKER_01 4:50

Which is oh, go ahead. No, that's that's amazing because a lot of the things are for uh the special units.

SPEAKER_02 4:58

Correct.

SPEAKER_01 4:58

And um, I feel uh especially nowadays and and stuff like that, there's uh patrol officers go out there and um I know that there's certain amount of hours that you have to train every year, for sure, but uh the training that really counts it is usually not the training that you have to have. Yes, right?

SPEAKER_02 5:22

Yeah. Well, and that's that's what we try to design all of our classes around is we're we don't want to check the box. We don't want to just say, oh, okay, everybody completed this course. We want it to mean something, we want it to be very valuable to the actual mission of a police officer. So um everything that we do is geared with that in mind.

SPEAKER_00 5:40

And every year there is the conference in June.

SPEAKER_02 5:44

Yep.

SPEAKER_00 5:44

And literally, people, I mean, last year's conference, there were people from Hawaii there, Las Vegas, that they can come from all over to really come that week to do some training, there's seminars. Um, share, share a little bit about that.

SPEAKER_02 6:01

Yep, so uh usually the second week of June, we have our annual training conference, and right now we're getting around 1,500 attendees, so that's uh you know, we're touching at least 1,500 police officers and firemen and tac medics every year with uh what we use is uh a sampling of training courses, and a lot of times the instructors are uh high-level traveling instructors, it's not just people from Ohio. We get instructors from all over the country, and they do like an intro to what their training courses are so that these officers can get some training and then decide what they want to take more of after the fact. Uh, we do debriefs, and um, every year it's a different set of individuals that come and describe their experiences in you know traumatic incidents and things like that. Um, we have an awards banquet, there's awards that are given out every year, and we have one of the best vendor shows in in the country when it comes to uh tech boss or associations. So um, you know, between 1,500 and 2,000 attendees come through the vendor show, 1,500-ish uh are trained every year. We get upwards of 250 to 300 vendors at the show, so you know the the officers get a lot of exposure to new equipment and um new methods.

SPEAKER_01 7:25

So the training facility, if somebody's out of Ohio, if they're in another state, can they actually contact you and and be trained in your facility or is this specific for Ohio residents?

SPEAKER_02 7:36

Not at all. Anyone can come as long as you're a police officer and take the training. Uh we we do training for adjacent states quite often. Um, and then for the conference itself, we have it at a Kalahari resort, so everybody can stay right on site, and we get people from Canada every year. Hawaii last year, they come from all over the country and they can stay there, and then we have around eight different training ranges throughout that little area around Kalahari. So depending on what class gets placed where, you start a Kalahari and then you go out to a training day, and then you come back for the evening and and and network and and be with like native people and very important.

SPEAKER_00 8:15

And OTOA is, I mean, I'm not law enforcement. I went to art school, right? I'm the farthest thing from it. Uh but I love OTOA, I'm biased, obviously. Right. It's also very family oriented. You know, everybody on the board and the team of OTOA is just, they were their heart on the sleeve, very hardworking, amazing, truly awesome human beings. And I think that extends to the conference and everything that they do. So having it at Kalahari, I mean it's a perfect setup at Kalahari, but it also allows those officers coming to the conference to bring their family. So like they're doing training, they can get a suite for the family and the kids. Kids can get the pool, then they can do dinner with them in the evening. You know, it's in Sandusky, Ohio, so June, it's always a nice time of year. So if you have an RV, there's also an RV camp.

SPEAKER_02 8:59

Right across the street.

SPEAKER_00 9:00

Yeah. Um the OTOA utilizes local vendors for food for dinner. There was a the barbecue last year. Oh my god.

SPEAKER_02 9:08

Yeah. We've been very fortunate. Yeah, we found a lot of the good vendors for food.

SPEAKER_00 9:14

Good food will travel.

SPEAKER_02 9:15

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 9:15

Oh, it was phenomenal. Um, and then there's like uh Ryan said, you know, utilizing local PDs, shooting ranges. There's Lake Erie Arms, which is a brand new facility out there that has one of three now in the country indoor clay fields. Oh, wow.

SPEAKER_02 9:35

And it's an interesting setup for sure.

SPEAKER_00 9:37

It is, and I've done the indoor clays, super wild, very awesome. But in Ohio, when it snows, it's always nice to be able to be inside when you're shooting clays.

SPEAKER_01 9:45

All year round.

SPEAKER_00 9:46

All year round, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 9:47

I think it's important too that um officers get training outside of their department. I mean, definitely follow department policies, but you can't rely on the training of your department to cover everything. And it's nice to go to those trainings and actually see what other departments are doing. Yeah. You know, just like coming to SHOT Show, um, being able to see what's out there other than what your department has for you. Um, it's important.

SPEAKER_02 10:13

For sure.

SPEAKER_00 10:14

And we, and that was something that Pat last year at the conference we were talking about, and when we talk about it in general, that a lot of the conversations that officers are able to have because they're from other states, other counties, when they're having a beer after the vendor show or after training, they're able to say, hey, you know, this happened, or how does your department handle this? Having those conversations with people that understand what your day-to-day is like is invaluable.

SPEAKER_02 10:40

Networking is absolutely invaluable, you're right.

SPEAKER_00 10:42

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 10:43

I remember when I um so I wasn't armed during during some of the time of probation. Yep. And I remember when I was armed, and my husband, first thing he did was get me extra training outside. Yeah. And um, I was in a situation, and the trainer that I was training with, that was the voice I heard during that situation. Yeah. And um, and it's really weird because I had had a lot of department trainings, but um the trainer outside the department was the one that really hit home for me.

SPEAKER_02 11:17

A lot of times if if it's something that you seek out and you're doing it because you want to do it, as opposed to being forced to do it by your department, it works out better and it hits home a little harder. And that so that you're not the only one who has had that experience for sure. And it's probably also because uh that training was was uh more in-depth than what what my department would oh yeah, no, it didn't check a box to to you know get some agency through a compliance issue or something, right? It actually provided value.

SPEAKER_00 11:50

Yes, absolutely. And when Ryan says, you know, the conference has over like 40 courses of sampling, it really is incredibly diverse. I mean, everything from night shooting, canine, you guys are now doing a huge thing with canine, canine, medical training, active shooting, all of it. All of it. Yep. Awesome. Yeah, less lethal.

SPEAKER_02 12:10

Yeah, and and you can come there and get certified in certain things too. Armors, classes.

SPEAKER_00 12:15

Oh, cool.

SPEAKER_02 12:16

A lot of that, yep.

SPEAKER_00 12:17

And a lot of it can also count towards credits.

SPEAKER_02 12:20

Correct. Well, so at the conference we'll have the active shooter response course, which does qualify for what we call CPT continuing professional training. So the state of Ohio has acknowledged that that course is valuable to what they believe the uh the standards are for a police officer. So they they give the police officers credit towards their continuing education for that class. Um, the rest of our classes in advanced training throughout the year are all qualified for CPT. So the Active Shooter course, which is one of the two state-funded classes, so you can take that for free as a police officer in Ohio. And then uh we're developing the Tactical Patrol Officers Program, which will also be both CPT approved and state funded, so you'll be able to take it for free. And it'll be a longer-term set of two weeks of training to uh to get a qualification, is what the state's gonna term a tactical patrol officer. So it's just uh more of a longer-term program designed to get multiple different sets of classes to uh you know become a little more tactically minded, just day-to-day.

SPEAKER_00 13:28

Yeah, I love that, and I want to emphasize the state funded part because we're talking about men and women that before their career have decided to train, become educated, and put their life on the line to protect us. And then we ask them to keep up on training and take time off of their job, and often officers have to pay for that training themselves, which then might stop them from getting that extra training, plus the time you might not be able to afford it, you have to take time off of work, unpaid time. So the fact that it's state funded and the credits, I mean, that's that's huge.

SPEAKER_02 14:05

Correct. Yeah. Um we we have partnered with our state training office, the OPATA office, and the attorney general's office to get this pushed through and make sure that you know these officers, literally every officer in the state, can take this training for free. So um you're 100% correct. A lot of times an agency will send a guy to training, but there's a lot of times where that officer is taking a vacation day and paying his own way to training. So to be able to get this quality training to the officers for free is huge.

SPEAKER_00 14:35

Yeah. So 2025, you guys have anything super awesome besides the conference that's coming out?

SPEAKER_02 14:44

So the uh active shooter response class is the big one for this year. We we started it the second half of last year. This will be our first full year with it. So we're trying to uh the attorney general's office has kind of set a goal to get every police officer in the state trained through it. So that's our our big thing this year is to get that done and uh get as many guys trained as we can.

SPEAKER_01 15:06

That's awesome. What about for uh Zero Nine holsters? What's what's coming up? What's the new product?

SPEAKER_02 15:12

So we just released our tourniquet case, so uh uh medical type peer. Um we released an administrative combo for detectives in plain clothes and administrative type officers. Um that's the newest thing, and it's been going really well. So um basically we're just keeping up with the changes as they come up. Anytime a company makes a new portable radio case or a new body camera, we we make a case for it and you can keep moving.

SPEAKER_01 15:43

That's awesome. What is your favorite thing about SHOT Show so far?

SPEAKER_02 15:46

Um, just seeing a lot of people that I only get to see once a year. Um, you know, I I've met a lot of great people between the OTOA and Zero9 over the last 15 years, and some of them, you know, are spread throughout the country, a couple of them spread throughout the world. So, you know, getting everybody into one place for a week is is really nice because you get to see a lot of great people.

SPEAKER_00 16:06

Absolutely. I do love that when you're walking from place to place, like you just run into somebody and you're like, oh my god.

SPEAKER_02 16:12

Oh yeah, haven't seen them in over a year. Yeah, yeah, for sure. Absolutely.

SPEAKER_00 16:16

Yeah. So if somebody wants to know about OTOA, where's the best place to go?

SPEAKER_02 16:22

Uh the website otoa.org.

SPEAKER_00 16:25

Super easy.

SPEAKER_02 16:26

Super easy. Um you can look through the catalog, you can reach out to our uh our office if you've got any questions, and you can uh sign up for classes directly on the website.

SPEAKER_00 16:37

Perfect. And registration for the conference will be opening in February.

SPEAKER_02 16:41

Early February.

SPEAKER_00 16:42

Yes, and you don't have to be Ohio officer.

SPEAKER_02 16:44

Correct.

SPEAKER_00 16:45

Come one, come all.

SPEAKER_02 16:46

That's right.

SPEAKER_00 16:47

And if people want to know more about 09, where can they go for that?

SPEAKER_02 16:50

It is zero9holsters.com, Z-E-R-O, the number nine, holsters.com.

SPEAKER_00 16:56

And you guys are on social media, you guys crush it on social.

SPEAKER_02 16:58

We uh we we try to keep up. I'm not a big social media guy, but um we we definitely try to keep up, and it's at zero nineholsters on all platforms.

SPEAKER_00 17:07

Sweet. Well, thank you so much for being here.

SPEAKER_02 17:10

Oh, I loved it. I appreciate you guys having me.

SPEAKER_01 17:12

Yes, thank you. Thanks for coming. It's it's been uh informative.

SPEAKER_02 17:17

Great, great.

unknown 17:18

Thank you.

SPEAKER_01 17:18

Have a great show, you as well.