Duct Tape as a Fashion Accessory?

BusinessWeek: During a long, 1,500-mile drive home from their son’s college campus, David Pippenger and his wife were talking duct tape. Not for plumbing, furniture repair, or even the rare heating-duct patch. No, they were discussing fashion accessories. Turns out Pippenger’s son, Jonathan, was sporting a duct-tape wallet his cousin had made for him for Christmas.
That wallet was causing a stir at Evergreen State College, in Olympia, where Jonathan had just returned for the spring 2002 semester. But as novel as it was, the wallet was also sticky, a bit stinky, and not exactly flawlessly made. But with more than a whiff of entrepreneurial spirit, Pippenger wondered, “If we could make a better duct-tape wallet, could it sell?”
Turns out, the answer is yes, very much so. While it’s hard to imagine the fashionistas of Paris and Milan clambering for duct-tape accessories, Pippenger’s duct-tape dreams have happily turned into a thriving business. Ducti, the company that grew out of those late-night musings, will mark its third year in 2005, and Pippenger, who is also a writer and producer for independent films and commercials, thinks the business is entering its best holiday season yet. He hopes Ducti will sell more than 100,000 of its fashion novelties, double the sales of a year ago and equal to the previous three quarters combined.
An Idea with Sticking Power [BusinessWeek]