Hidden Gems: Meet Brit Jasperson of Weasel Wear

Today we’d like to introduce you to Brit Jasperson.

Hi Brit, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I grew up watching my successful, entrepreneurial dad run his own construction company, as my mom supported him fiercely. While he worked harder than just about anyone I knew, I also saw that this empowered him with the freedom to (within reason) create his own schedule, earn with uncapped potential, and then use that income to extend generosity towards others, in addition to caring for our family. Therefore, I decided from a young age to own my own business.

At that time, I assumed I would become a veterinarian, and use my lucrative work to found my own dog rescue. In fact, I did end up graduating in biology, but then life took a turn….

At the age of 24, I both got married and got diagnosed with a very rare autoimmune condition from which I had suffered since my teen years. I became a stay-at-home wife and full-time chronic illness warrior who relentlessly used my scientific education to further my own healing. As fate would have it, we acquired our first (senior) rescue dog several years later, just as I began to experience some significant physical relief. This is when I decided I would like to finally reconnect to my mission of healing others, earning for it, and assisting more animals in need. But HOW?!

In March 2015, I found a woman on Instagram who was running a Team Beachbody network marketing business. Workout from home, drink superfood smoothies, eat clean, and post about it all to help others? Heck!! I was already doing that, so I saw it as a beautiful way to further my own journey while simultaneously assisting others with health goals and earning an income.

I ran that virtual coaching biz for 7 years (including becoming certified to teach LIVE fitness classes), and let me tell you—it isn’t a business model for the faint of heart!! But I approached it with absolute courage and passion, touched many lives, and gained an invaluable marketing education along the way.

With that said, I so deeply cared about my clients that I became extremely exhausted by the process of coaching, and decided I would like to pivot into fashion during the Summer of 2021. We started small with T-shirts, pins, and stickers. We then failed big by unsuccessfully pouring months of time and energy into a line for pets. In January 2022, I mentioned this failure to a friend with whom I had connected online years earlier (Elle Rebel), who then offered to become my co-designer—bringing my clothing ideas to technical fruition and mentoring me in the fashion world. It was an offer I couldn’t refuse, so in January 2022, Weasel Wear was born!!

Our first major project was a nostalgic, blood-spattered Buffy + Willow half-heart bag set (think Vampire Slayer meets 90s BFF necklaces). We have since released our Bold Bloodsuckers clothing collection, additional bags, accessories, and decor. No matter the design, we provide spooky flair with unique details and an obsession with the comfort you just can’t find anywhere else.

We now offer both retail and wholesale options, are actively working on our second full collection, and donate a portion of all profits to @helpinghomelesscompanions—a local non-prof that provides homeless folx and their pets with all the resources needed for basic health and comfort.

I may not be a vet with a rescue like I planned, but I am an entrepreneur who creates her own schedule. I’m a scientist who has aided in healing herself and others. And I am using all of my successes to fund animal rescue. In spite of the many hurdles placed in my way, I feel a bit like the queen of turning lemons into lemonade!!

I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
Where to begin?! Obviously acquiring autoimmunity (along with depression, anxiety, and body dysmorphia) at 15 following a severely traumatic event was the start of the struggle. It took me 10 years to achieve a diagnosis, at which time my battle had only just begun…!! At the time I embarked on my healing journey, concepts such as organic, gluten-free, whole-body healing, highly sensitive people, mind-body connection, the gut as the epicenter of the immune system, etc. were really in their infancy. I spent YEARS collecting information and using my own body as a giant experiment // investment before feeling called to help others.

The next major hurdle was stepping into network marketing completely oblivious to the fact that it’s a business model many loathe. I spent years being personally attacked for my professional life, and had to simultaneously shed my protective emotional armor AND open myself up to cruel criticism. OUCH!!

After that, it was the hurdle of our pup, Weasel. After our senior rescue, Daisy passed, we rescued a 4-month-old cattle dog puppy who we quickly learned struggled with aggression. I spent the better part of 3.5 years watching our worlds close in on us as his behavior escalated in spite of a hefty time, emotional, and financial investment on our part. After 3.5 years, we finally found the trainer that could help us properly communicate with his personality, and it took several more years of implementation to reform our sweet boy.

The next obstacle was simply breaking into fashion with tons of passion, bursting with ideas, and absolutely NO knowledge of the technical side of the biz (not to mention the financial investment).

Amongst all of this, we also experienced tons of personal tragedy and loss between 2018 and now—including my dad experiencing a massive stroke in 2018, my husband and I receiving more diagnoses and going through multiple surgeries, our mascot Weasel requiring double knee surgery, the loss of 4 family members when I plane crashed into their Yorba Linda home on superbowl Sunday (a party we were on our way to at the time), one uncle passing due to Covid, another hit and killed on the job by a drunk driver, my aunt being diagnosed with terminal cancer, and my mother-in-law spending a week in the hospital for sepsis.

All this while stubbornly keeping my health front-and-center!! I learned the way that I couldn’t pour from an empty cup, so I have maintained an overall clean lifestyle throughout. Business should GIVE US quality of life—not steal from it!! It should empower us to fiercely support our loved ones—not steal us from them!!

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
We specialize in high-end, spooky fashion year-round!! Early on in life, I fell in love with the idea of macabre Halloween costumes, and I never understood why we only wore them once a year.! So we developed a brand that gives creepy folx permission to express their shadow side no matter the month. We then use a portion of both retail and wholesale profits to fund our higher purpose of dog rescue by donating to @helpinghomelesscompanions.

Is there any advice you’d like to share with our readers who might just be starting out?
STAY CURIOUS!! There’s no such thing as failure if you simply don’t give up. This goes for business and health alike!! When something isn’t going your way, ask yourself WHY?? Therein lies your next step; and that next step is always ultimately propelling you toward success.

Pricing:

• Apparel $60-$130
• Accessories $10+
• Bags $50-$160
• Stickers $3+

Contact Info:

• Website: Weaselwearco.com
• Instagram: Instagram.com/weaselwear

Image Credits
@mayapologies @kameraguykev