If you already know my work from my entrepreneurial journey, you know I believe in testing ideas early and often. But even after starting six other businesses, putting a brand-new concept in front of a panel of judges is always nerve-wracking… and that’s exactly what happened this past Thursday when I stood up to pitch The Borrow Bar at Wake Tech’s Blueprint to Skyline Business Pitch Competition.
The room was packed with incredible local innovators from all over Wake County, representing clients from Wake Tech’s Entrepreneurship & Small Business Center and the LaunchWakeCounty programs. The competition was fierce, with ideas ranging from wellness retreats to prescription drug discovery startups.
I pitched in the “Blueprint” category—the track specifically for early-stage and idea-stage ventures. My goal was simple: convince the judges that Wake County needs a membership-based lending library for high-quality household and entertaining items. I talked about our vision: reducing clutter, keeping cash in our neighbors’ pockets, and making it easier to host that perfect event or tackle that weekend project without buying gear you’ll only use once.
I am absolutely thrilled to announce that The Borrow Bar was selected as one of the winners! We walked away with $3,000 in funding, which we are injecting directly into our upcoming Summer 2026 Beta launch.
More than the money, though, this win was incredible validation. Sponsored by Wells Fargo and judged by local business leaders (including Mike Conlon), getting the nod from this panel tells me we are on the right track. It proves that the “aha” moment I had about the wasted space in our garages and closets resonates on a much larger scale.
A huge thank you to my Spring 2026 LaunchGarner (nearly 20 amazing female entrepreneurs!) and the team from the Town of Garner and Wake Tech (shout-out to April Wood and Todd Lyden especially!) for the support that helped me hone the pitch.
This $3,000 in seed funding is going straight toward storage capacity, sourcing our initial inventory for the Beta, and of course, marketing and advertising to get the word out! If you want to be one of the first to access it, make sure you fill out our interest form below. We are building this for you, and this is just the beginning.
Cheers,
LJN