One of the first things my mother suggested I buy in preparation to go to college at Florida State University (FSU) was pepper spray. I, like many women my age, am living alone for the first time in my life. Although there are many thrills in this new experience, there are a lot of unforeseen dangers as well. I have been fortunate enough to never have experienced intense violence myself, but an estimated 20 percent of undergraduate women get assaulted during their time in college. This unfathomable number is certainly anxiety-inducing, and I often spend time worrying about my safety rather than enjoying my limited time in college.
Bri Rogers recognized this problem and decided to do something about it. After having her own negative experiences with assault in the Tallahassee area she founded her brand BriSafe, a company dedicated to providing accessible self-defense tools and training to young women. I had the privilege of sitting down and speaking with her about her business, her inspirations and her hopes for the future. Bri is incredibly bright and passionate, and her business insights are fascinating to listen to.
Her Campus (HC): What is the story behind your business?
BriSafe (BS): I’ve always worked in the hospitality industry, and you’d think that working as a bartender and getting off late at night would be super terrifying, right? I was sexually assaulted during breakfast during COVID (in August of 2020), and I stress it was during breakfast to people because a lot of them have misconceptions that assault only happens at night. The day I was assaulted, I didn’t have any means of defending myself and I was completely alone— not even my boyfriend was with me [she jokes that her boyfriend, with his statuesque appearance and bright red hair, is her personal “Viking”]. Two or three weeks later I started BriSafe because I was sexually assaulted.
HC: What products and services do you offer?
BS: I realized the one thing I did have on me when I was assaulted was my keys. Growing up my mom and grandma would say “put your keys in between your fingers when you’re walking alone.” I realized that we almost always have our keys on us and looked online and found that someone made a self-defense key chain. Since I was home and COVID was so prevalent, I thought to myself “why not start a business?” I tweaked some things from the design I saw online and that’s how I started BriSafe. After I started with the key chains, I began branching off to door stoppers, hidden knives, stun guns and safety awareness classes.
HC: Do you think there’s a lack of self-defense training for college women and if so, how do you combat that?
BS: What a lot of people don’t realize is that one in five women will be sexually assaulted on a college campus, which is terrifying. I know that FSU offers self-defense training on campus, but I’ve heard that most of the time it’s taught by men and not as informative as expected. One way that I combat that is by offering my services, but also once a year I host a self-defense class where we teach not just hand-to-hand combat, but also safety awareness and education on human trafficking. The best part of this class is that we teach self-defense using the BriSafe keychain, so people can learn how to use the product that they invest in.
HC: Can you talk about your involvement on college campuses in Tallahassee?
BS: I made it a point to be involved on Florida A&M University (FAMU) and FSU’s campuses because college students are some of the most vulnerable to violence. A lot of people come to college very young with the expectation of getting an education and having fun, but we never think of the possibility that something bad can happen to us. I’m involved in different organizations on both campuses: at FAMU, they have a victim advocacy program and I was able to give seminars for the students to alert them about self-defense and safety awareness. The support from FSU has been incredible. FSU has multiple resources for survivors, so I was able to reach out to different programs like FSU Surge, the Black Student Union, the Asian American Student Union and Leading Women of Tomorrow. These organizations have been so receptive to knowledge and helping their members stay safe.
HC: What type of products do you sell and where can I find you in Tallahassee?
BS: Some of the products I do sell are not campus friendly, however, we do offer a variety of products. A lot of people are hesitant to buy them because they view them as weapons, but I try to combat that mentality by asserting that we’re not using them to forcefully harm people, we’re using them to protect ourselves. I have a variety of street-legal self-defense products, like hidden knives (with blades shorter than four inches) in objects that look like pens and combs. I have pepper spray that can be used from up to 12 feet away and has UV dye. My keychain has pepper spray, a siren, a flashlight, a bottle cap opener, a puffball so you can find it easily, a wristlet and most importantly a glass breaker. If you’re in a car accident or need to get out of a car in any situation, you can use the glass breaker to shatter the window [she stresses targeting the corners for the most success in breaking]. I also have stun guns and disguised stun guns that look like cell phones. They’re great for on-campus and off-campus use! You’ll be able to find my products at The Fuzzy Pineapple and Market Wednesday.
HC: What inspires you and what are your hopes for the future as a business?
BS: I went to counseling after I was sexually assaulted, but being able to help people is another form of therapy for me. Knowing that I am providing confidence for people to be able to protect themselves is what inspires me the most. My ultimate goal is to be able to have my products easily accessible to people by having them in multiple stores in the Tallahassee area. While I wouldn’t want a brick and motor store, in the future I would love to have a safe house where vulnerable people can talk, get counseling and know that they are not alone.
HC: What is the most fulfilling part of your job?
BS: The most fulfilling part of my job and business is being able to provide confidence in protecting myself. Now I know that what happened to me won’t happen to another person.
In the short time we talked, Bri was an incredible inspiration to me and I hope she continues to thrive as a business. You can find her products here and be sure to follow her on social media to be updated on her progress and products!
Want to see more HCFSU? Be sure to like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, YouTube and Pinterest!