The Women of Holster Central - Samantha's Story

If you have been following along, we asked a few of our female readers and customers what concealed carry and the 2nd amendment means to them. We wanted to dig deeper and understand their perspective and mindset and what their experience has been so far as a female concealed carrier. Last week we spoke with Jane about her experience as a Concealed Carrier for 30 years! 

We want to help more women feel comfortable with concealed carrying and welcome more female concealed carriers to the community! If you are a woman and on the fence, thinking about Concealed Carrying - This is the article for you!

We spoke with Samantha about her experience and journey as a concealed carrier.

Samantha - 32 - Florida - 

HC: Hi Samantha, thanks for speaking to us today about your Concealed Carry journey!

Samantha: No problem at all, it's my pleasure!

HC: So how long have you been a Concealed Carrier?

Samantha: I have been Concealed Carrying for just about 4 years now.

HC: So what got you started with Concealed Carry?

Samantha: Well I have always known that self defense is important and I had taken martial arts as a kid growing up. I didn't consider the fact I could Concealed Carry until I was older.

HC: That's great, so what then prompted you to take the leap?

Samantha: Well I think as women we know we are vulnerable when alone but choose to push it to the back of our minds and not think about it with a bit of a “it won't happen to me” mentality.

But in reality this fear is there and to live our daily lives, we can't walk around paranoid or worry that every man walking past us in a dark parking lot is looking to hurt us.

HC: That is a good point!

Samantha: Yes and I know some women carry pepper spray to feel “more safe” which is usually given to us by a loved one who cares about us with a “fine ok i will carry it in my purse” mindset. But in reality I think we know it's for our own good and hopefully we won't need to ever use it.

HC: Yes that's a very common approach

Samantha: Yes exactly and after some research, what I never realized was pepper spray is not that effective, it can actually be pretty useless against an attacker and piss them off more!

HC: Haha quite possibly! So what was your next step?

Samantha: My boyfriend introduced me to the idea of Concealed Carry having told me about how pepper spray and tasers can only do so much and how a motivated and determined attacker can easily still do a lot of harm.

We watched some videos of Active Self Protection and it really opened my eyes to the dangers out there and that bad things do in fact happen regularly, we just don't always see or hear about it. 

HC: Awesome, we love ASP, we are avid watchers of John's channel and highly recommend it! So after that you had made your mind up?

Samantha: Yes, I went gun shopping with my boyfriend and I decided to go with a Sig P365. After that I took the CCW Class and got my permit.

HC: Congrats, so what was the next step after passing to get your CCW permit?

Samantha: Well I am sure you can guess, I needed a Holster haha! My boyfriend told me to go to Holster Central as he had ordered his holster from there.

HC: Sure thing! That's where we come in! You have an awesome boyfriend haha

Samantha: Yes I do! I went and ordered a Tiffany Blue IWB Holster for my Sig P365 (which I now totally adore). I eagerly waited for my new holster as I couldn’t wait to try it out and carry with it. 

HC: That's great, we love that gun and great choice in Holster. How did it go? 

Samantha: Well I received my holster quickly which was great, the moment of truth was holstering my gun for the first time and I loved hearing that satisfying 'click' as it clicks into place! 

I was surprised at how comfortable it was and how easily it conceals, nobody would ever guess I am carrying a firearm (which is what you want when carrying).

HC: Rock on! That's our goal, we want more people out there carrying and that all starts with a good holster that you can enjoy carrying with.

Samantha: For sure, I feel so much more at peace and at ease when being out by myself, doing a late night run to Walmart, or walking to my car in a parking lot after dinner, going to fill up with gas or a quick trip to the ATM, places I would be more worried about visiting by myself.

HC: That's the beauty of Concealed Carry, it is liberating and it definitely changes your perspective.

Samantha: Yes absolutely! Carrying gives me a sense or preparedness and confidence because I know if I needed to I could defend myself on a moments' notice.

HC: So what was the next step, how did things go after carrying for a few months?

Samantha: Well what really gave me confidence, when carrying and starting to carry with one in the chamber, was the training aspect - lots of dry fire and hitting the range becoming comfortable with my firearm. I also learnt lots from watching youtube videos and USCCA is a great resource too for information on Concealed Carry and the legal side of things too.

HC: That is a big step, I know a lot of people who do not carry with 1 in the chamber, and I think that is down to confidence, when you are training and confident that changes things. 

Samantha: Yes and I do try to get out to the range as much as possible and practice with my gun, but I think everyone knows they should probably do that more often! 

HC: 100% we agree, we need to do that too!

HC: So, do you have any parting words?

Samantha: I would say, being a Concealed Carrier has been a big commitment but I definitely think it's for the better!

I feel a lot more grateful to live in America where I have the freedom to Concealed Carry and therefore defend myself and I am now truly an advocate of the 2nd Amendment.

Before I didn’t really pay much attention to it or care about gun rights, but now I am aware, I am a lot more grateful and intend to defend it as it helps to defend me.

I urge all women to consider Concealed Carry and good luck to everyone out there already on their Concealed Carry journey!

HC: Thanks Samantha, that is awesome advice and a great perspective! We are glad to have you onboard with us! Thank you so much for your time!

Samantha: You're welcome! Thanks guys! 

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We want to thank Samantha for telling us her story and her contribution.

If you have any comments or are a female concealed carrier, let us know your thoughts in the comment section below!

We would love to hear from you!

Thanks for reading!