Meet Brianna Godberson | Podcast Host, Artist, and Business Owner

We had the good fortune of connecting with Brianna Godberson and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Brianna, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
When I became a Mom, I realized I needed an outlet for myself. I had a first iteration of Femme Sauvage a couple of years ago, but was focused on painting custom leather and denim jackets for people. That slowed down a lot while having my son and took a lot of time to create just one piece. That idea slowly faded but after a couple of years, a new idea sprung. I felt so full of love and creativity after having my son, I was inspired to channel that energy into creating art. So the first drawings for the brand Femme Sauvage came into being. My very first drawing was my logo, a wild woman running with a wolf. Very much inspired by Women Who Run With The Wolves by Dr. Clarissa Pinkola Estés. Femme Sauvage means wild woman in French, and I wanted the first collection to be specifically focused on the wild woman in all of us. Some of the very first drawings I had were animals such as the Orca, Elephant, Wolves, Lioness, and Bear just to name a few. I had always prided myself of having a big piece of my soul being a wild woman and although I felt such love and creativity after having my son, I also needed to find this new version of myself that was also born after becoming a mom.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
To say how I got to where I am professionally today, actually starts during a really low point in my life. My first pregnancy was very complicated and ultimately we lost our first baby at about 16 weeks. I was very depressed and turned to creating art to help heal my heart. My husband and my mom wanted to do something special for me and chipped in to get me an IPad so I could explore doing digital drawings. On my iPad I’m able to draw things so easily and be able to do different things with that art more easily than on canvas or other mediums. I never thought I would enjoy my iPad as much as I do, but it has truly helped me to become a better artist and has really brought me so much joy. A few months later I found out I was pregnant with my son, George, and that is when I really started to heal. After he was born I felt such a fullness and happiness with life and knew I was ready to start a new chapter. I wanted to be an example to my son and show him that achieving your dreams is possible. I also wanted to focus on Philanthropy, so I set out to design a brand that would be centered around giving. I blended this new love for digital artwork and my idea for a philanthropy focused brand and relaunched Femme Sauvage. Femme Sauvage donates $5 from each item sold to different charities that support the animals in the artwork I create. I have spent three years putting my heart and soul into building Femme Sauvage and I am proud to say I did it! Actually it’s one of the first dreams of mine I have achieved on my own, through hard work and determination. It hasn’t been an easy path at all, especially having to balance being a mom, but it’s important to have the space to be creative and keep working on my dream. As moms, wives and just as humans, we need that space to recharge. That’s why I expanded my business by doing a podcast. I wanted to be able to showcase the deeper meanings behind my designs, bring awareness to a variety of topics that have to do with nature & animals and help listeners find their own inner wild. I hope to help listeners know themselves more deeply and what I am starting to find is that the more we connect ourselves with nature, however that may look to each of us, helps us to find our true selves. One of the most enjoyable parts of starting my businesses is the connections and friends I have made. I love connecting with people and chatting with them and with the Find Your Wild podcast I can do that for work. I hope with my clothing brand and now my podcast, I can not only do what I love, but help the world while doing it.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I was recently in Manteo, North Carolina and had such a wonderful time! I went to visit my friend Aspen who is a wildlife photographer and runs guides in the Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge. This place in particular is really special because it is home to the Endangered Red Wolves and one of the only places in the world you can see them in the wild. I was so lucky to be able to see them twice! I also was able to see other amazing creatures such as black bears, a barred owl, bobcats, and vultures just to name a few. What I really loved about seeing the refuge through Aspen’s eyes was her love and respect for the animals and always making sure we gave them the proper space to not disturb them. And besides the incredible wildlife, the town of Manteo has a lot of beautiful stores and restaurants to check out. Because it’s on Roanoke Island, there are many historical things to check out too.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I would say there were a couple of people and things that inspired me. The first being the book Women Who Run With The Wolves by Clarissa Pinkola Estés, that inspired me to hone my first designs towards the wild woman in all of us. I was also very inspired by two other business women, my cousin Liv, who has a very successful sauce company called Livwell. And also my good friend Carla who owns a jewelry and crystal company called the Crystal Bee.She makes unique and thoughtful pieces of jewelry. Both are so inspiring as moms and entrepreneurs, they always support and help keep me going with my own business!

Website: https://shopfemmesauvage.etsy.com

Instagram: Shopfemmesauvage & findyourwildpodcast

Twitter: https://x.com/findyourwildpod

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/Find-Your-Wild-Podcast/ & https://www.facebook.com/p/Shop-Femme-Sauvage/⁠

Youtube: https://www.facebook.com/p/Shop-Femme-Sauvage/⁠

Other: https://open.spotify.com/show/6DZUBORNv90yiXTET3QUbD?si=g668xhC1SX6p-2IJS_3gmg

Image Credits
Photos taken by me or my husband