Kerry Prater raised $100,000 for her Salem-based clothing startup in just over 40 minutes at the annual Star Tank pitch event Tuesday.
She walked a little nervously into a room of about 20 local investors , donning one of the shirts she designed herself that proclaims “she wears combat boots too!”
Prater settled in quickly, telling the investors she is a disabled veteran who struggled for years to find merchandise for women that recognized their sacrifices.
Whenever she did find a women’s section inside veterans’ stores, Prater said it was usually male clothing with an added flower or “something stupid.”
