That's true, when I was a junior in high school, think around 1994, I bought a sky jacket that came with two RECCO chips, each inserted in a custom pocket built in the sleeves.
I don't think they added much to the cost of the jacket, both because my budget was pretty tight back then and because i remember purchasing it for other features, the RECCO system being just an afterthought.
When I showed up wearing that jacket at school, those RECCO reflectors became quite the center of curiosity and conversation among my classmates...