Baltimore County loans back Wild Kombucha, ex-Raven’s sports glove gel

Baltimore County awarded its latest pair of small business loans to a pair of manufacturing companies.
The County Department of Economic and Workforce Development’s Boost Loan Fund is designed to provide flexible financing for entrepreneurs, meaning it is customized for each recipient to help grow their business. The loans also seek to have lower down payments and interest rates set at or below market rates. It’s funded by revenue that comes from the state’s casinos.
In the latest round of funding, Mobtown Fermentation received a $100,000 loan. The company, which moved to Timonium from Hampden last year, brews Wild Kombucha. The product is available at 230 locations in the Mid-Atlantic, but before the loan it was still being bottled by hand.
“Loan support from the Baltimore County Boost fund has allowed us to purchase an automated bottling line to keep up with product demand. We are adding jobs in Baltimore County as more and more people discover the fresh taste and healthy benefits of our unique kombucha brews,” Sid Sharma, a partner in Wild Kombucha, said in a statement.
Also receiving a $100,000 loan was Grip Boost. The company was founded by former Ravens tight end Matt Furstenburg and a pair of chemical engineers who graduated from the University of Maryland. Its product is a polymer gel that helps athletic gloves (think football, golf) keep a tacky grip. With the loan, Grip Boost is seeking to add inventory and grow in its headquarters at the UMBC Technology Center, according to the County.