Armor Guys

What Armor Guys does

Armor Guys Inc., founded in 1993 as the US operating arm of parent QS Safety, designs, develops, and manufactures premium hand and arm protection products — primarily cut-resistant, heat-resistant, puncture-resistant, and general-purpose gloves and sleeves — serving industrial and manufacturing end-users across the United States. The company is the first glove manufacturer to commercialize graphene for hand protection, anchored by the patented Kyorene® liner technology (first generation) and Kyorene Pro® / Kyorene Pro Max® (second-generation, 24-gauge), with complementary proprietary platforms including Taeki5® engineered fiber, HCT® hybrid coating technology, Basetek® cost-effective cut-resistant lines, and Perfotek® puncture protection. Manufacturing is vertically integrated in ISO 9001:2000 and ISO 14001 certified facilities that source raw materials, upwind proprietary yarns, knit liners, apply coatings, wash, and inspect gloves in-house.

Armor Guys generates revenue through one-time sales of branded products via a two-tier channel: an exclusive network of independent US industrial distributors supported by a direct sales force of approximately twelve regional sales managers under two Directors of Sales (East/West). The product portfolio spans 151+ SKUs across premium, mid-tier, value, specialty, and economy tiers, priced via quote-based bulk orders to distributors serving enterprise customers in automotive, aerospace, construction, metal fabrication, food processing, and general industrial segments. Verified customer logos include one of America's largest airlines, Midland Tool, Betts Industries, Bearing Distributors, and Barton Malow Builders.

The company is differentiated by an unusually deep third-party validation stack — Verified Graphene Producer® status (The Graphene Council, October 2022), EcoVadis Gold Medal, SGS CO2 footprint certification (February 2025), GRS certification (February 2022), and a Graphene Council-validated safety study (June 2023) — alongside compliance with ANSI/EN 388 cut-resistance, OEKO-TEX, REACH, and California Proposition 65 standards. It holds registered trademarks and patents for Kyorene®, Kyorene Pro®, Taeki5®, HCT®, Basetek®, Perfotek®, and Extraflex®. Sister company Graphene One operates the upstream graphene fiber development under the QS Safety umbrella. Headquartered at 10990 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, with a distribution hub in Henderson, Nevada, Armor Guys maintains a small headcount (11-50) and an active 2025-2026 product launch cadence targeting growth in cut-resistant and impact-resistant categories.

Name

Armor Guys

Legal name

Armor Guys Inc.

Website

https://armorguys.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1993

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Armor Guys, the US arm of QS Safety, designs and manufactures premium cut-resistant and general-purpose gloves and sleeves — including the world's first commercialized graphene-based hand protection (Kyorene®) — selling through US industrial distributors to manufacturing, construction, aerospace, and metalworking customers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Los Angeles

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Hand and Arm Protection Products: Armor Guys generates revenue through the design, development, and manufacturing of premium hand and arm protection products including gloves and sleeves. Products are sold through a network of independent distributors and direct sales force to end-users across various industries.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Armor Guys designs, develops, and manufactures premium hand and arm protection products, including cut-resistant, heat-resistant, puncture-resistant, chemical-resistant, and general-purpose gloves and sleeves. Products span multiple proprietary technology platforms (Kyorene® graphene-based, Taeki5®, HCT® hybrid coatings, Basetek®, Perfotek®) and are sold through a U.S. network of independent distributors backed by a direct sales force targeting industrial and manufacturing end-users.

Product overview

Armor Guys is a world leader in the design, development, and manufacturing of premium hand and arm protection products. Their diversified product portfolio includes multiple brands: Kyorene Pro Max (2nd generation graphene-based), Kyorene Pro (2nd generation graphene), Kyorene (1st generation graphene), Extraflex Plus (improved engineered yarn), Extraflex (engineered yarn), Basetek Plus (enhanced cost-effective), Basetek (cost-effective cut-resistant), Chemiflex (chemical-resistant), Duty (economical general-purpose), Perfotek (puncture-resistant), and Taeki5 (cut/heat/abrasion-resistant). Products range from general purpose to high-performance cut-resistant (ANSI A1-A9), with various coatings including HCT Microfoam Nitrile, HCT Nano-Foam Nitrile, Polyurethane, Smooth Nitrile, Crinkle Latex, and Foam Nitrile.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Kyorene®: World's first graphene-based gloves and sleeves. First generation of patented, graphene-based gloves & sleeves in general-purpose and cut-resistant styles. Graphene provides bacteriostatic, thermal regulating, odor neutralizing and UV resistant properties.
• Kyorene Pro®
• Kyorene Pro Max®
• Taeki5®
• Basetek®
• Basetek Plus
• Extraflex®
• Extraflex® Plus
• Perfotek®
• Chemiflex
• Duty
• HCT® (Hybrid Coating Technology)
• Kaulig Racing Partnership

Products and services

• Kyorene Pro Max

Quantifiable outcome

• Gloves maintain functionality after 2+ weeks of daily use in coolants and metalworking fluids
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature7 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• QS SafetycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerParent company of Armor Guys. QS Safety began operations in 1993 and over the past 25+ years developed some of the finest gloves and sleeves. QS Safety launched the world's first graphene-based gloves under the Kyorene® brand. Vertically integrated manufacturing operations are ISO 9001:2000 and ISO 14001 certified.
• Graphene OnecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSister company to Armor Guys. Graphene One develops applications for Kyorene fibers and brings new functionality to textiles. Achieved Verified Graphene Producer® status and GRS certificate for polyester-based graphene fibers. Featured in International Fiber Journal for bringing new innovations to major brands.
• Kaulig RacingminorGTM or Marketing PartnerMotorsports partnership featuring Armor Guys racing gloves. Represents a marketing partnership to increase brand visibility in racing community.
• The Graphene CouncilcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIndustry organization that awarded Armor Guys and sister company Graphene One the Verified Graphene Producer® status. Conducted study validating graphene safety in hand protection products.
• SGScoreOthersThird-party certification organization that verified Qiangsheng (parent company) emissions and carbon footprint. Official testing partner for Armor Guys CO2 footprint assessment.
• International Fiber JournalminorGTM or Marketing PartnerIndustry publication featuring Kyorene® graphene fibers and innovations brought to major brands through Kyorene technology.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Market position

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ArmorGuys_Inc
• Facebookfacebook.com/armorguys
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/armor-guys
• Instagraminstagram.com/armorguys

Compliance8 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Armor Guys