What is Mac?

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What is Mac?
Mac or Mack is the short term for Macintosh, a coat that is rain-resistant developed in the United Kingdom. The term mac has been used as the generic name for almost every raincoat. However, a genuine edition of the raincoat is made to avert leakage by utilizing a rubber coating. What made the mac raincoat popular is its updated design that is similar to the ‘in’ in fashion.

The man behind the mac raincoat is no other than Charles Macintosh. The man was born in Glasgow, Scotland in the 18th century. Macintosh owns a factory, which is into textile production. Charles is considered as innovative and resourceful businessperson. In order to augment the profits of his factory, he thought of ways in finding other useful applications of waste products from a gas plant near where his factory is located. Macintosh have done some experiments and found out that naphtha solution dissolves the rubber. The dissolved rubber forms a material that is similar to thin sheets of fabric. Since the material is rubber, the resulting product is waterproof.

Thomas Hancock was another businessperson who is into clothing business. Hancock had his own experiments in waterproof materials but had insignificant success. Later on, Macintosh has made a partnership with Hancock. However, the technology seems to be imperfect. The rubber coat that underwent lamination process is not stiff and not comfortable to wear. Moreover, the rubber material melts away with high temperatures.

In 1843, to solve the problems encountered with the rubber coats, Hancock developed a new vulcanization method. Hancock used ether solution and the result was a success. The solution made the rubber more resilient and flexible. More experiments were made such as combining wool fabric with cured rubber. However, the wool fabric seems not to adhere well on rubber. Later on, the factory discovered light cotton fabric. The fabric was added to the Macintosh raincoats and the result was a more flexible vulcanized rubber.

In between the 19th and 20th century, mac raincoats have been regard as a functional piece of wardrobe. The mac raincoats were not regarded as a raincoat for fashion. For several times, the company manufacturing the mac was taken over by numerous clothing and rubber-making companies. It can be said that those companies made varying success. Mac raincoats had been very popular in the United Kingdom since the coat fits their climate. However, the mac falls short in the attraction of new markets.

The 1990s were the years of the mac’s downfall. The factory was about to cease its operation due to huge drop in sales. Fortunately, David Dunko took over the factory and saved mac’s style. Dunko revitalized the style of the raincoat without sacrificing its functionality. The company collaborated with fashion designers to create coat designs that will attract more buyers. Japan was one of the countries who patronized the new mac raincoat designs.

Later on, there have been coat manufacturers imitating the mac raincoats for lesser cost. However, the original company continued to produce original mac raincoats. What made the success of mac raincoats are its partnerships with various famous fashion brands. Today, the company accepts custom-design coats that are permitted in by appointment only at their United Kingdom office.

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