Match Made in Melcher

On the surface, Zach Traylor (MS '25) and Alexa Borja may not seem to have much in common.

He's an MS finance graduate with experience working in the energy industry. She's a content creator studying entrepreneurship.

But like the saying goes, opposites attract, and that was true for Traylor and Borja, both in business and personally.

After graduating with his bachelor’s degree, Traylor worked in the energy industry before going back to school to study finance. Borja is an experienced social media businesswoman, creating promotional materials for a range of Houston restaurants and high-end beauty companies. After attending a wedding, the couple decided to start their own entrepreneurial venture, and their joint business Roll ‘N’ Reel Photo Booth was born.

“With my background in finance and Lexie's strengths in social media marketing, I knew that we'd have good odds of having some traction right from the beginning,” Traylor said. “That's exactly what happened. We were able to collaborate with a lot of student organizations here on campus, leverage some of my corporate relationships and do some company holiday parties.”

Traylor and Borja spent the summer growing their business further by participating in Bayou Startup Showcase, an accelerator program within the No. 1 ranked Wolff Center for Entrepreneurship’s RED Labs.

Throughout the program, Borja took the lead on developing Roll ‘N’ Reel’s marketing strategy and discovered her passion for the people-facing aspect of business.

“Doing drop-ins in person taught me a lot and helped me in my own personal brand,” Borja said. “It helps to run my own ads and pitch myself to different companies that I want to work with.”

As summer days became fall nights, the couple kept up with Roll ‘N’ Reel as another income source and said it’s one of the many ways that they balance each other.

"“Working with your partner is one of the most rewarding activities that I've done in my relationship with Lexie,” Traylor said. “It’s challenging at times because it adds a different dynamic, but in the same way I think it's helped us grow our relationship.”

Both Traylor and Borja have spent the months since Bayou Startup Showcase building their individual careers as well. Traylor finished his graduate program, received the Texas Business Hall of Fame Future Legend award and launched his newest oil and gas service company startup, Praxis Custody Measurement Group. In addition to growing her social media career, Borja started the semester as part of the newest Wolff Center cohort.

The couple is recently engaged and are expecting their first child.