SABRE

What SABRE does

SABRE, legally Security Equipment Corporation, is a privately held U.S. manufacturer of personal-safety and self-defense products founded in 1975 by David Nance and Jane Nance and operated under the corporate umbrella in Illinois. The company's flagship offering is police-grade pepper spray and pepper gel, differentiated by an industry-exclusive in-house HPLC laboratory that tests every canister for maximum-strength formulation and by Crossfire Technology that enables deployment at any angle including upside-down. The product portfolio extends across stun guns, personal alarms (up to 120 dB audible at 1,000 feet), bear and wildlife spray (Frontiersman), dog deterrent spray (Protector), 2-in-1 PepperLight devices, 0.68 caliber home-defense pepper and impact projectile launchers, and a DIY wireless home-security system, all priced at roughly $10-$50 unit price points.

SABRE serves two distinct customer sets through a single brand: a long tail of individual consumers (general consumers, runners, outdoor enthusiasts, college students, seniors, homeowners) who purchase one-time hardware products through mass retail, specialty retail, and DTC e-commerce, and institutional buyers including the NYPD, Chicago PD, U.S. Marshals, and U.S. Department of Defense for whom SEI/ASTM E3187-19 and ISO 9001 certifications are procurement-relevant. Distribution spans Walmart, Target, Amazon, Home Depot, Lowe's, Dick's Sporting Goods, Bass Pro Shops, Cabela's, automotive and hardware chains, and international retailers across Canada, the U.K., Germany, and Mexico, with the company claiming a presence in 40+ countries and six continents on the institutional side.

The business model is predominantly one-time hardware sales via retail shelf placement and DTC e-commerce on sabrered.com, supplemented by an affiliate program, a Personal Safety Academy providing instructor certification and free public training, and cause-marketing partnerships with the National Breast Cancer Foundation (since 2007, over $2 million donated), RAINN, and Concerns of Police Survivors. Revenue and headcount-trend disclosures are absent; the company is reported to have 101-250 employees and remains family-owned with no institutional funding rounds, no parent company, and no subsidiaries.

Name

SABRE

Legal name

Security Equipment Corporation

Website

https://sabrered.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1975

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

SABRE (Security Equipment Corporation) manufactures and sells police-grade pepper spray, stun guns, personal alarms, bear spray, projectile launchers, and DIY home-security products, selling primarily to individual consumers through mass and specialty retail in 40+ countries and secondarily to U.S. law-enforcement and federal agencies.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Personal Safety Products

NAICS

Small Arms, Ordnance, and Ordnance Accessories Manufacturing (332994), Small Arms Ammunition Manufacturing (332992), All Other Miscellaneous Retailers (459999)

SIC

Ordnance & Accessories, (No Vehicles/Guided Missiles) (3480), Sporting & Athletic Goods, Nec (3949)

akta.pro primary industry

Ammunition Manufacturing (Small-, Medium- & Large-Caliber) (IMABAHAG)

akta.pro secondary industry

Firearm Storage & Safety Retail (Safes, Cases, Locks) (CRAMAKAI)

Keywords

• Pepper spray products
• Personal safety devices
• Self defense equipment
• Home security systems
• Wildlife deterrent sprays

Headquarters

HQ city

St Louis

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Consumer Personal Safety Products: SABRE generates revenue through one-time sales of physical personal safety products including pepper sprays, pepper gels, stun guns, personal alarms, and home security systems. Products are sold directly to consumers via e-commerce and through retail distribution channels.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels7 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

SABRE manufactures and sells police-grade personal safety and self-defense products, with pepper sprays and pepper gels as the flagship category. The product portfolio spans stun guns, personal alarms, bear and wildlife deterrent sprays, dog sprays, home defense projectile launchers, wireless home security systems, and use-case-specific variants for runners, automotive, travel, and seniors. Products are sold direct-to-consumer via e-commerce and through extensive retail distribution including mass merchants, specialty sporting goods stores, and major online marketplaces, serving both civilian consumers and law enforcement agencies worldwide.

Product overview

SABRE (Security Equipment Corporation) offers a comprehensive personal safety product portfolio built around police-grade pepper spray and self-defense technology. The core offering centers on pepper sprays and pepper gels available in multiple form factors (keychain, pocket, holster, tactical, gel), supplemented by stun guns, personal alarms, and bear/wildlife sprays. The product line extends into home security with wireless alarm systems, door/window sensors, and security bars. Specialized variants address specific use cases: automotive (Safe Escape 3-in-1 with seat belt cutter and window breaker), running/outdoor exercise (Runner Pepper Gel with reflective hand strap), and tactical/law enforcement applications. Emerging connected products include the Smart Pepper Spray showcased at CES 2024. The portfolio also includes enterprise solutions for professional buyers and instructor certification training programs. All pepper spray products are backed by SABRE's HPLC laboratory testing ensuring maximum strength formulation consistency.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Frontiersman: Bear spray and outdoor safety product line, including bear spray, bear bells, bear horns, and bear-resistant food storage containers.
• Protector
• Crossfire
• PepperLight

Products and services

• Pepper Sprays and Pepper Gels

Quantifiable outcome

• Up to 5X more spray than competition with 25 one-second bursts
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• RealtreeminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 2 April 2020SABRE partnered with Realtree, one of the hunting industry's most iconic camouflage brands, to launch camouflage-patterned pepper spray products designed for hunters and outdoor enthusiasts who want discreet safety protection that blends with their outdoor gear.
• National Breast Cancer Foundation (NBCF)coreGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2007SABRE has partnered with NBCF since 2007, donating over $2 million to support breast cancer awareness and providing over 20,000 mammograms and early detection services. A portion of pink pepper spray product sales is donated year-round. SABRE co-founder Jane Nance credits the partnership with inspiring her own mammography screenings, which detected her cancer at stage one.
• RAINN (Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network)coreGTM or Marketing PartnerSABRE partners with RAINN, the nation's largest anti-sexual assault organization. The partnership includes a Mint Pepper Gel with Finger Grip and Snap Clip product, with a portion of proceeds donated to RAINN. The partnership also provides sexual assault survivors an opportunity to share their stories and helpful resources.
• Concerns of Police Survivors (C.O.P.S.)coreGTM or Marketing PartnerSABRE is a proud partner of C.O.P.S., supporting survivors of fallen police officers. As the #1 pepper spray trusted by law enforcement, SABRE donates a portion of proceeds from specific products (SABRE Pepper Gel with Finger Grip, Safety Whistle, and Detachable Keychain) to help rebuild the lives of survivors and co-workers affected by line-of-duty deaths.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Guard Alaska: Guard Alaska competes with SABRE's Frontiersman bear spray line, selling bear and wildlife deterrent sprays through outdoor retailers across North America with similar EPA-registered formulations.
• Counter Assault: Counter Assault competes directly with SABRE's Frontiersman sub-brand in bear spray, offering EPA-registered bear deterrent sprays sold through outdoor sporting goods retailers like Bass Pro Shops and Cabela's.
• POM Pepper Spray: POM is a direct competitor in the consumer pepper spray category, selling maximum-strength OC sprays and keychain personal safety devices through similar retail and e-commerce channels as SABRE.
• Byrna Technologies: Byrna is the leading direct competitor to SABRE's Home Defense 0.68 caliber pepper projectile launcher line, marketing CO2-powered less-lethal launchers to civilians and professionals with similar use cases around home defense and personal safety.
• UDAP Industries: UDAP is a direct competitor in bear spray and outdoor wildlife deterrent products, with comparable formulations and distribution through outdoor and sporting goods retail channels serving hikers and hunters.
• Mace Security International (Mace Brand): Mace is the most direct historical competitor to SABRE in pepper spray and personal defense sprays for both consumer and law enforcement markets, with overlapping retail distribution and a comparable product portfolio spanning sprays, gels, and personal alarms.

Broad incumbents

• SimpliSafe: SimpliSafe is a larger DIY home security incumbent that competes with SABRE's Wireless Home Security line, offering monitored and unmonitored alarm systems with similar DIY, no-contract positioning.
• Ring (Amazon): Ring is a major smart home security incumbent owned by Amazon that competes with SABRE's home security and door/window alarm categories, offering connected cameras, alarms, and sensors with deeper software and ecosystem integration.
• Kimber America: Kimber is a broader firearms and self-defense brand with adjacent personal safety positioning; while primarily firearms-focused, it overlaps SABRE in the tactical/law enforcement and concealed-carry consumer segment.
• Axon Enterprise (formerly TASER International): Axon is a larger, publicly traded incumbent in the less-lethal weapons space, dominating conducted energy devices for law enforcement with overlapping professional-channel relationships and a broader public-safety technology portfolio.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@SABRERed
• Facebookfacebook.com/sabreredpepperspray
• Instagraminstagram.com/SabreSafety
• TikToktiktok.com/@sabresafety
• Xx.com/SabreRed
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sabrered

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about SABRE