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Catapult serves roughly 280 incubator businesses in Lakeland, offering workspace, mentorship and specialized facilities for startups. | Courtesy Catapult
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5-minute read
Clay Canning started Screen Skinz in his parents’ laundry room.
He was a dual enrollment student at Polk State College and George Jenkins High School in 2019 when he walked into Catapult’s Co.Starters program with an idea for a customizable screen protector — a product that shows licensed or personal designs when a phone is off and disappears when the display is on.
Clay Canning works on a Screen Skinz product demonstration. | Courtesy Screen Skinz Media
In 2025, Catapult served 280 businesses, including Screen Skinz. In total, these companies generated more than $27 million in revenue and employed 303 people last year, according to the organization.
The Lakeland Economic Development Council (LEDC) created Catapult to foster the growth of local startups in 2014.
Entrepreneurs often possess the grit and motivation to build regardless of environment, said Christin Strawbridge, Catapult’s president. But the business incubator provides access to mentorship, shared infrastructure, and capital pathways, which can shape how quickly a company grows.
What is Catapult?
Located downtown near Lake Mirror — part co-working space, part business incubator — Catapult provides workspace, mentorship, and specialized facilities for early-stage founders trying to turn ideas into operating companies.
Upstairs, members share office space, meeting rooms, and access to professional support. Downstairs, Catapult houses a commercial kitchen and a maker’s space equipped for manufacturing and prototyping — resources that can be cost-prohibitive for startups on their own.
Entrepreneurs work inside Catapult’s shared co-working space in downtown Lakeland. The facility provides desks, meeting rooms, and access to business mentors. | Courtesy Catapult
The maker’s space includes a woodshop, metal shop, 3D-printing lab, textile room, electronics stations, and microfactory space, allowing founders to design, prototype, and produce products. Members can work with professional-grade tools, all within a collaborative environment.
“There are not very many other facilities that have a commercial kitchen to the extent that we do, a makerspace to the extent that we do, and then all of the co-working space,” said Strawbridge.
Catapult operates as a privately-funded nonprofit backed by community support. Half of its budget comes from membership dues, and the rest is raised through community partnerships, room rentals, events, and private donors. It also offers Launch, an investor program that gives supporters a chance to fund micro-grants for founders.
From laundry room to ‘Shark Tank’
When they were just getting started, Screen Skinz relied on a combination of bootstrapping and family support. Canning said an early viral moment on TikTok helped jump-start the business.
After participating in Catapult’s Co.Starters program in Lakeland, Canning relocated to Houston with co-founder RaShaun Brown to complete a sports tech accelerator program and to raise early-stage capital. Canning said the company amassed about $500,000 following the accelerator and later announced a $1.5 million seed round. He eventually returned to Lakeland, where Screen Skinz is now headquartered.
The company recently appeared on season 17, episode 10 of the reality show “Shark Tank.”
Clay Canning presents Screen Skinz on ABC’s Shark Tank, where the Lakeland-based company secured a $300,000 investment deal. | Courtesy Disney/John Fleenor
Canning and his co-founders pitched the customized screen protectors and walked away with a $300,000 deal in exchange for 15% equity and a royalty agreement with Sharks Kevin O’Leary and Alexis Ohanian.
Out of the Shark Tank
For many early-stage entrepreneurs, access to capital is one of the largest barriers to getting started.
Johannys Irizarry, a micro-enterprise development specialist at Suncoast Credit Union who works with Catapult founders, said most startups do not qualify for traditional bank loans in their first years.
“Most entrepreneurs have an amazing idea, but they don’t have the funds — or a family member who can hand them $100,000 to get started,” said Irizarry.
That gap is where micro-lending, alternative funding sources, and small-scale grants become critical — including Catapult’s Launch, another pathway to funding.
“When you are going to apply for a business loan, they’re going to ask for your financials — the last two or three years of tax returns,” Irizarry said. “If you’re in the first couple of years, you won’t have those documents. And if you do, they’re going to show very little revenue.”
Traditional lenders often limit loans to a fraction of existing revenue, a threshold that many new businesses simply cannot meet, she said.
Irizarry said micro-lending programs require far less documentation, focusing instead on a business plan and a clear vision.
The shared space at Catapult reduces upfront risk, she said. Instead of signing a long-term lease, paying utility deposits, and purchasing equipment, founders can start small — sometimes with a cubicle — and scale gradually. Without that environment, she said, many early-stage businesses would struggle to launch.
“They can start very little,” she said, “and then take one step higher.”
Move forward faster
For Canning, Catapult’s value wasn’t just programming.
“I think the underrated part of Catapult — something that is never talked about — is just the community,” Canning said.
When he first attended Co.Starters, he was still refining Screen Skinz’s business model. He developed the process to customize glass screen protectors but was still trying to understand how to move the idea to scale.
“It was groundbreaking for me,” Canning said. “If I have a question about something, I can just go talk to someone.”
Strawbridge said that proximity is intentional. When founders face setbacks, funding hurdles, and market uncertainty, Catapult provides mentors, peers, and “experts in residence” who can offer guidance.
“Entrepreneurship is still going to be super difficult,” Strawbridge said. “The goal isn’t to solve all your problems. It’s to help you move forward faster.”
The shared environment that Catapult offers can shorten the learning curve, reduce the isolation that often stalls new ventures, and lead to entrepreneurs who stay in the community even after their businesses begin to grow.
“Finding that community when you’re early in your entrepreneurial journey makes Lakeland stickier for that person,” Strawbridge added.
“There are so many people that are for you and want to support local if you do start it here in Lakeland,” Strawbridge said.
Insight Polk examines community conditions and solutions in six target areas from UCIndicators.org: economic & employment opportunity, education, housing, food security, transportation & infrastructure, and quality of life.
LkldNow’s Insight Polk independent reporting is made possible by the United Community Indicators Project with funding by GiveWell Community Foundation & United Way of Central Florida. All editorial decisions are made by LkldNow.
Kayla Borg is a Lakeland native and graduate of Western Carolina University, where she earned her degree in English and film production. She began her media career in Atlanta at CNN, quickly rising from production assistant editor to technical director/editor, leading live broadcasts alongside field reporters. Since then, she’s worked in education, instructional design and independent filmmaking.
