5th annual Great Lebanon County Pitch awards $10,000 to three local businesses

The Lebanon Valley Chamber Foundation awarded Baked With A Twist the first prize of $5,000 in grant funding and Windmill Art Studio the second prize of $3,000 in grant funding in the fifth annual Great Lebanon County Pitch on the afternoon of Wednesday, Nov. 19.

In addition, the Lebanon Valley Chamber Foundation awarded The Canine Canvas with a $2,000 Women in Business grant, which supports women-owned and -operated businesses that support women in the community.

Baked With A Twist started as a soft pretzel stand in Lebanon Farmers Market in 2023 but transformed into a bakery and coffee shop when it moved to its own storefront at 718 Poplar St., Suite G, Lebanon, in 2024.

Read More: Baked With A Twist holds ribbon-cutting ceremony, marking 1 year at storefront

Windmill Art Studio opened its own storefront at 2231 Lebanon Valley Mall, Lebanon, four months ago. It offers art for sale in the front and a space for customers to make their own art and “leave the mess with us” in the back, in addition to other offerings.

Read More: ‘Leave the mess with us’: Windmill Art Studio opens in Lebanon Valley Mall

The Canine Canvas opened its own storefront at 133 Treeline Drive, Newmanstown, a renovated garage at certified pet groomer Ava Groy’s home, three months ago. It offers one-on-one pet grooming sessions focused on the pet’s experience.

Baked with a Twist, Windmill Art Studio, The Canine Canvas, and four other local businesses — Starlight Artisan Crystals, Health Check Juice Bar, Special Threads Boutique, and Daya’s Shop — pitched to a panel of judges in a room full of community members.

Lebanon Mayor Sherry Capello, Jill Fidler from Fulton Bank, Deb Joyce from Finanta, Jerry Glenn from the Lancaster-Lebanon chapter of SCORE, and Julie Osborne from UPS, representing the Women in Business committee, served as judges.

Samantha Gettle, creator and owner of Wildflowers on Fox, which was awarded a total of $7,000 in grant funding in the fourth annual Great Lebanon County Pitch, provided an update on her natural cosmetics brand and also served as a judge.

Read More: 4th annual Great Lebanon County Pitch awards $8,000 to two small businesses

Each of the seven finalists was given five minutes to present their business idea and 10 minutes to answer the judges’ questions — timed by Karen Groh, president and CEO of the Lebanon Valley Chamber of Commerce and the Lebanon Valley Chamber Foundation.

Prior to the Nov. 19 event, each applicant submitted an “interest to participate” form, connected with a SCORE mentor, potentially attended free workshops, and submitted a final application and business plan for the free competition.

“The idea behind the Lebanon County Pitch was to encourage our entrepreneurs in the area to write a business plan,” Groh said. “Having a business plan is so very important to having a successful business. So, to encourage them to write a business plan, we found some money that we could use as an incentive for them to turn the business plan in, have to think about it and prepare it and hit certain milestones on it.”

Fulton Bank, Members 1st Federal Credit Union, Finanta, and the Lancaster-Lebanon chapter of SCORE invested in the fifth annual Great Lebanon County Pitch, which closed with the announcement of the grant winners, photo opportunities, networking, and refreshments.