“We wouldn’t exist – and certainly not on this scale – without the help from seCTer. The conventional capital funding route didn’t work for us. People didn’t think we were sexy enough! But now our horticultural features are designed into hotels, casinos, office buildings, and large residential buildings all across the country.”

— Chris Pianta, CEO/Owner, – AgroSci Inc., Colchester

“Without seCTer we could not have bought the business. Banks didn’t want to talk to us, they said we were too small and asking for too much. The seCTer loan also had a much better interest rate, which made it all work. SeCTer allowed me to get out of a corporate job and do something on my own. We  were able to move from New Hampshire to Mystic, which is where we wanted to be.”

— Paul Jacey, President, Components For Manufacturing, LLC

“We’ve reached capacity for production and distribution now that we’re a year into it. We wanted to move into different channels for distribution to grow. We were distributing the kombucha in kegs and bottles but to get into more restaurants and into grocery stores we needed to be able to can it. So this seCTerRISE grant is allowing us to purchase equipment for packaging and more equipment for production. Now we can do more B to B and distribute far wider than before.”

– David Brannan, Founder/Head Brewer, 860Kombucha

“This is a game-changer. The seCTerRISE grant is generous funding to help a small business make some big strides. I really needed to update my website and fix some things since that’s the core of my business and it’s how customers and farmers connect. Now I can contract a web developer to make upgrades that will make it easier for customers to navigate the site and for farmers to update their inventories and manage orders. I work with more than 30 farms in Connecticut so if I can grow it will help them too – and maybe I can hire a web developer eventually!”

– Rosemary Ostfeld, Owner, Sustainable Planet LLC, dba Healthy PlanEat

Witness how AGCT was able to remain resilient and enter the world-wide personal protective equipment (PPE) market with the help of CT PTAC to successfully create a new division of the company, during its most challenging year of its 40 years in business.

While it has been a challenging year for many retail and manufacturing businesses, independent craft brewery and longtime seCTer loan client, Beer’d Brewing Co., was able to sustain and even grow in 2020. Hear how Beer’d owner Aaren Simoncini tapped into opportunities in order to keep his company not only alive, but thriving.

The COVID-19 pandemic put Genesys Diagnostics to the test — quite literally. See how the Montville-based seCTer client found itself on the cutting edge in an area of great public need — becoming the first lab in New England after the Department of Public Health to provide COVID-19 testing.

Pivoting is a term commonly used in sports — but in 2020, sporting goods manufacturer Gilman Gear came to understand pivoting in a new way. Witness the pivot of longtime seCTer and CT PTAC client, Gilman Gear, as they shifted production to manufacture personal protective equipment (PPE) for the medical community at a time when the need was at its greatest.