On Starting A Safety Device Accessory Business
My name is Rajia Abdelaziz, I’m 26 years old, and I’m the Co-Founder & CEO of invisaWear.
invisaWear creates safety devices disguised as everyday accessories. They look like everyday accessories (necklaces, bracelets, keychains, fitness bands, and even scrunchies!) but they are actually safety devices. They have a button hidden on the backside. If you push the button two times, it immediately texts up to five friends/family members to let them know that you need help. The text message sends them a link with your exact GPS location. You can also enable the free 9-1-1 feature to connect with 9-1-1 dispatchers!
What's your backstory and how did you get into entrepreneurship?
One night I was walking back to my car when a car full of guys started following me. They rolled down the window and started yelling inappropriate comments, the car stopped and one of them started to get out. Although I had my phone, there wasn't enough time to call for help. I ran to the car as quickly as possible and thankfully I wasn't hurt.
Businesses don’t fail, people quit. Never be afraid of asking for help.
Unfortunately, MILLIONS of women (and men) can't say the same. In the United States, every 90 seconds someone is attacked. According to RAINN, the largest sexual assault organization, 1 in 5 women is sexually assaulted at some point in her lifetime. This is highly unacceptable and needs to change and this is why we decided to start invisaWear.
Take us through your entrepreneurial journey. How did you go from day 1 to today?
Since day 1, we participated in multiple accelerators and talked to thousands of consumers. We were a part of MassChallenge (one of the top accelerators in the country) and that was instrumental to our growth! We were also a part of a wonderful accelerator called EforAll that helped us make great connections and encouraged us to speak to potential customers to understand whether or not they felt unsafe and what they would want in a product like invisaWear. This helped us build a product with all the features that consumers want to see!
Before starting invisaWear, I actually worked for Amazon Robotics where I was programming wearable devices before most people knew what an Apple watch was. I was actually working on developing some groundbreaking technology for Amazon. Having a dual degree in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science along with my experience at Amazon was incredibly helpful when developing invisaWear. Shortly after beginning invisaWear, I was actually recruited to work for Google and I declined a six-figure salary to work on invisaWear because I was passionate about helping to put an end to the awful statistics surrounding assault.
In the early stages of invisaWear, we self-funded as much as possible. My co-founder Ray and I raised some funds from friends and family and we relied on bank loans that we both co-signed. We also launched pre-orders on Indiegogo! Our campaign was a huge success, it met its goal in under one week and ended up doing over 200% of our original goal. We are so grateful for our first customers. They believed in us from the very beginning and helped us bring invisaWear to life!
Since then, we’ve raised millions of dollars in funding, we’ve been featured on many prestigious news outlets including Good Morning America, The Rachael Ray Show, and more! Most importantly, we’ve been able to help save lives!
How are you doing today and what does the future look like?
We recently signed a large partnership with ADT, the #1 Name in Security! In partnership with ADT, we launched new premium functionality. With an invisaWear premium subscription, you have 24/7 access to trained ADT agents who can stay with you on the line anytime you feel unsafe.
Need someone to stay with you on the line while you walk to your car? We got your back! Feeling uncomfortable is rideshare? Chat with an agent using the app. They'll be able to see your live location and can get you to help quickly if you need it. invisaWear premium also comes with activity tracking & self-defense classes!
We’re always looking for ways to innovate and are working on some exciting new products that we can’t wait to launch over the course of the next six months.
What platform/tools do you use for your business?
We love connecting with our customers and Klaviyo (an email marketing tool) allows us to send customers emails so that we can keep our audience updated on promotions, new product launches, safety tips, and more!
This pop-up software allows us to capture customer emails. We have a spin to win that allows customers to get a discount and people love it!
Instagram/ Facebook
We’re very active on social media. It helps us connect with influencers who promote our products and it helps us with a lot of marketing!
What have been the most influential books, podcasts, or other resources?
I’m all about self-improvement! My favorite book is 10 Habits of Highly Successful individuals. It honestly changed my life. It talks about how important it is to recognize the areas you can improve on and set goals.
I’m not a huge podcast person but I’d say I love True Crime podcasts and self-improvement podcasts! I don’t have a favorite though.
Advice for other entrepreneurs who want to get started or are just starting?
My advice is to always believe in yourself and to never give up! Businesses don’t fail, people quit. Never be afraid of asking for help. Ray and I credit a lot of our success to amazing mentors who’ve helped us avoid making the same mistakes that they have in the past.
When you start a business, you have to find something that you’re passionate about. For us, we’re passionate about creating a safer world. The thing that motivates our team the most is reading success stories of people we helped during scary situations. The team always jokes that we need to keep tissue boxes on everyone’s desks because someone always tears up reading about when we get an email or message saying we helped someone during an emergency.
Where can we go to learn more?
- Website
- Follow us on social media: @invisaWear
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Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
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