Launch Fuquay-Varina

03/14/2026

Congrats to Taylor Mercier Lynch!!!

Wake Tech celebrated local innovation and entrepreneurship Thursday as finalists competed in the college's Blueprint to Skyline Business Pitch Competition, held at the Western Wake Campus.

https://www.waketech.edu/post/wt-news-story/992837

The event brought together a dynamic group of budding entrepreneurs representing clients of Wake Tech's Entrepreneurship & Small Business Center, graduates of LaunchWakeCounty and Wake Tech students, each presenting their ventures for a chance to earn funding and expert recognition.

The competition was sponsored by Wells Fargo and reflects the college's ongoing commitment to supporting small-business development and fostering a robust entrepreneurial ecosystem in Wake County.

The college's Wake Tech SBC also continues to be a cornerstone of local business development, providing free support to any resident or small business in Wake County. Services range from one-on-one counseling to workshops that guide entrepreneurs through starting, stabilizing and scaling their ventures.

Long-time Wake Tech benefactor Mike Conlon served as one of the judges for the competition. Wake Tech's planned Conlon Western Wake Campus will be named in his honor and will replace the college's current leased facility on Kildaire Farm Road in Cary.

11/19/2025

11/19/2025

🎉 𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙖𝙣 𝙪𝙣𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙜𝙚𝙩𝙩𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚 𝙣𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙞𝙣 𝙁𝙪𝙦𝙪𝙖𝙮-𝙑𝙖𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙖!🎉
On Sunday evening at the Fuquay-Varina Arts Center, we proudly celebrated our 3rd Launch Fuquay-Varina Cohort—and officially graduated 12 incredible students! 👏✨

A huge thank you to Fiesta Time Bar and Grill for sponsoring the night and serving up an amazing dinner. 🌮🙌

This program is truly a community effort—powered by:
• Wake Technical Community College
• Downtown Fuquay-Varina Rotary Club & Rotary Club of Fuquay-Varina
• Town of Fuquay-Varina & Fuquay-Varina Downtown Association
• Fuquay Coworking
• Our dedicated Launch Committee of local business owners
• And our Fuquay-Varina Chamber of Commerce, serving as program chair

Special shoutout to:
📸 Elizabeth Sechrist Photography for capturing beautiful moments
👨‍🏫 David Geikler of Wake Tech Entrepreneurship & Small Business Center
🎤 Everett and James Wong for their leadership and behind-the-scenes support
🎈Janah Wood with Busy Bristles & Balloons for the beautiful arch

And thank you to every mentor, sponsor, and business who poured into this cohort. You are what makes Launch FV so special. ❤️

💼 𝗠𝗲𝗲𝘁 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝟭𝟮 𝗮𝗺𝗮𝘇𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗱𝘂𝗮𝘁𝗲𝘀:
• Jason Robinson
• Jacob Banu
• Valarie Williams
• Landis Harwell
• Yajaira Vega
• Raymond “Terrel” Robinson
• Damar Rashad McArthur (Unable to attend Sunday—still an outstanding student and entrepreneur!)
• Susan Newnam
• Anna Rook
• Taylor Mercier-Lynch
• Casey Quinn-Daly
• Ryan Brown

🎓 All 12 students participated at no cost, thanks to our partnership with Wake Tech Entrepreneurship & Small Business Center and the incredible support of this community.

11/07/2025

👏 Shout out to Suzanne Yeager and Brittany Marie, owners of Your Smart Office!

Thank you for coming out and leading an incredible session on one of the most important topics for every new business owner… BOOKKEEPING! 📊

Our Launch Fuquay-Varina students dove all the way in — asking questions, taking notes, and soaking up every ounce of knowledge. These two handled it all like total pros! 🙌

And a special thank-you for treating the class to a delicious dinner from Assaggio's Pizzeria & Ristorante! 🍕😋

We are so grateful for your time, your expertise, and your support of our future entrepreneurs! 💛

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𝗚𝗿𝗮𝗱𝘂𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗶𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗿. 𝗪𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗼 𝗷𝗼𝗶𝗻 𝘂𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗰𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗯𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘀𝗲 𝗻𝗲𝘄 𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗲𝘂𝗿𝘀, 𝗡𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝟭𝟲𝘁𝗵 𝗮𝘁 𝟲𝗽𝗺.
Link: https://www.facebook.com/events/761861046902464?acontext=%7B%22event_action_history%22%3A[%7B%22surface%22%3A%22home%22%7D%2C%7B%22mechanism%22%3A%22attachment%22%2C%22surface%22%3A%22newsfeed%22%7D]%2C%22ref_notif_type%22%3Anull%7D

10/31/2025

👉 𝘼𝙧𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙖 𝙗𝙪𝙨𝙞𝙣𝙚𝙨𝙨 𝙤𝙬𝙣𝙚𝙧 𝙬𝙝𝙤 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙨 𝙨𝙝𝙖𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙧𝙚𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙣𝙚𝙪𝙧𝙨𝙝𝙞𝙥 𝙟𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙣𝙚𝙮 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙨?

We’d love for you to join us as a 𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗼𝗿 for our upcoming Innovate Weekend! 💡

It’s an incredible opportunity to inspire and guide new entrepreneurs as they bring their ideas to life.

🔗 Apply here: https://launchfv.org/mentor-application/

Be a mentor and change a life! We're accepting mentoring applications now at Mentor Application.

10/31/2025

👏 Big thank you to Bryce Pickett with Holly Springs Pest Control for joining our Launch Fuquay-Varina cohort this week!

Our students love hearing from — and picking the brains of — successful multi-business owners like Bryce. His journey is truly inspiring! 💡

From starting his first business from scratch in Utah to building new ventures here in North Carolina, Bryce embodies what it means to be a 𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗸 𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲𝗿, 𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗲𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗿, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗴𝗿𝗼𝘄𝘁𝗵-𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗱 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿.

He continues to invest in his own development to lead his teams and businesses with excellence. 🙌

Also a shout out to Daddy D's BBQ for the delicious dinner!

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👉 𝘼𝙧𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙖 𝙗𝙪𝙨𝙞𝙣𝙚𝙨𝙨 𝙤𝙬𝙣𝙚𝙧 𝙬𝙝𝙤 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙨 𝙨𝙝𝙖𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙧𝙚𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙣𝙚𝙪𝙧𝙨𝙝𝙞𝙥 𝙟𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙣𝙚𝙮 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙨?

We’d love for you to join us as a 𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗼𝗿 for our upcoming Innovate Weekend! 💡

It’s an incredible opportunity to inspire and guide new entrepreneurs as they bring their ideas to life.

🔗 Apply here: https://launchfv.org/mentor-application/

10/24/2025

👏 Big thank you to Debra Ferris and Angie Field for representing the Rotary Club of Fuquay-Varina! These amazing ladies truly embody the spirit of servant leadership and “Service Above Self.” 💛

They shared with our Launch Fuquay-Varina cohort the inspiring history of Rotary, the power of bringing community together, and how collaboration with other nonprofits creates lasting impact. 🌟

If you’ve ever wanted to connect, serve, and make a difference — all are welcome!
🗓 The club meets the 2nd and 4th Thursdays from 12:30–1:30 PM
📍 Cleveland Draft House of Fuquay

And a big thank-you to Cleveland Draft House of Fuquay for the delicious dinner!

We’re so grateful for the amazing support from our local business community. 💪

👉 There is still time to apply if you are interested in mentoring our current class. We’d love to have you join us! Apply here: https://launchfv.org/mentor-application/

10/17/2025

Another amazing night with our Launch Fuquay-Varina cohort and another incredible local business owner sharing their story! 🙌

A huge thank-you to Kimberly M Austin, founder of Training Center, for her heartfelt and inspiring presentation, “𝘍𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘌𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘰𝘺𝘦𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘌𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘶𝘳.”

Kimberly’s journey began in 2020—right in the middle of finishing her degree when the world shut down. But that didn’t stop her! She kept moving forward, building new skills, and discovering strengths she didn’t know she had. Every pivot she made along the way built her resilience and helped shape the successful business owner she is today. 💪

Our class loved hearing her speak straight from the heart — her story truly left an impact. ❤️

Her passion for education, safety, and mentorship shines through in everything she does and continues to inspire others to chase their dreams.

And of course, a big thank-you for providing dinner from The Mason Jar Tavern, Fuquay-Varina! 🐔🧇

We’re so grateful for the amazing support from our local business community. 💪

👉 Interested in mentoring our current class? We’d love to have you join us! Apply here: https://launchfv.org/mentor-application/