Men in uniform.

A company that has during the past three decades stitched together uniforms for the Colombian armed forces has begun selling its wares to a quite different market segment--gay men.

Industrias Salgari is one of the main sources of uniforms for Colombia's military, especially the national police and the air force. The company, which employs 150 and posted nearly US$1.4 million in sales last year, draws 80% of its income from uniform sales.

The owners of Salgari, which is based in Pereira, Colombia, have two children who moved to Miami three years ago to try to tap the market for goods favored by homosexual men, first in Florida and then across the United States. Together with two partners, the offspring created Dulce de Leche, a clothing line featuring bright colors, designs and embroidery. All the clothing is made in Pereira and shipped to Florida.

So far, they have done pretty well. In 2004, Salgari exported close to $250,000 worth of Dulce de Leche branded clothing to the United States, and the company has sold items to department stores like Macy's in Miami, San Francisco, Las Vegas and New York. "It's an incredible achievement because most Colombian companies do only assembly work," says Paola Toro, one of Dulce de Leche's founders and production manager for the company. "We're in these stores with our own brand. No other Colombian company has been in these stores with its own brand."

The company aims to reach break-even sales of $800,000 this year. It's creating fall and winter collections, as well as a clothing line for more "conventional" men, although men for whom a look matters. "At first the brand became known in the gay segment," Toro says. "Now it's not necessarily for gays; it's for people who are fashion-conscious."