At the start of 2020, Karen Johnson said she was on the edge of the breakthrough she needed to push her startup, Verge Innovation, to the next level.
At the time, Johnson had been working with contacts at the Pentagon to get her IT services platform implemented within government agencies. Then Covid hit, and Johnson --- like startup founders and small business owners all over Charlotte and the country --- found herself having to make some difficult decisions about her business.
She was forced to press pause on many related expenses, including the rent on her office space at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.
"I began to worry that I had been right here where I was supposed to be with [my company], but... all of the momentum I was gaining halted because of Covid," she said. "It brought on a lot of stress, almost to the point where I was ready to give up, but everyone kept saying I was too close, even though it felt like one step forward, two steps backwards."
Johnson, who has more than 20 years experience working in IT, founded Verge in 2017 with the goal of delivering digital results and modernizing IT infrastructures by developing custom cloud solutions, data analytics and business intelligence for clients.
The startup's products and services help businesses make better decisions and provide awareness training and tools to help prevent a variety of non-technical and technical breaches.
After months of applying for loans and grants with no luck, Johnson came across the City of Charlotte's Access to Capital Small Business Recovery grant program.
The program was a partnership between the city and Foundation For The Carolinas and will distribute $30 million in federal CARES Act funding to micro-businesses and small businesses in Charlotte.
Johnson applied, and was chosen as a recipient for a $10,000 grant that she said is enough to keep Verge afloat.
"I can’t even describe the feeling. It was like God said, 'Ok, I’m not giving you the 'big thing' yet, but let’s see what you’re going to do with this,'" she said.
Johnson said she's using the money to first catch up on rent payments for her UNCC office space and insurance costs. She will also pay what she owes to several of contract employees, who she said have been understanding of the situation.
"What I want to do is try to pay a few more months ahead on my rent to make certain I don’t have to worry about that for a while," she said. "[UNCC] has been great and willing to work with me through this."
Moving forward, Johnson said she plans to use any remaining funds to possibly invest in hiring someone who can help upgrade Verge's social media presence.
"My [company's] presence on Facebook and LinkedIn and Instagram, it needs to make an impact," she said. "I want to find someone who can help me do that."
Johnson said receiving the grant is just further proof, to herself and others, that she is on the right path with Verge Innovation.
"Everything is going to happen the way it’s supposed to happen. This grant happened the way it was supposed to," she said. "[It's like I was] drowning... and someone threw me a lifeline, so I was able to hold onto that and pull myself to the shallow end. It’s encouraged me to look for other grants I can apply for."
