News Stories

Godfrey Riddle wants to build you a home; How Civic Saint’s eco-friendly bricks could reshape the foundation of affordable housing

Winning $55,000 in a recent national LGBT pitch competition provides Godfrey Riddle the building blocks for a hard pivot — shifting the focus of his lifestyle company Civic Saint from handmade retail goods to earthen bricks used to sustainably create artful, affordable homes. “Affordable housing is a problem I’ve been pondering since my family lost…

KC Cattle Company steaks its reputation on wagyu hot dogs; Why this rural MO business enlists veterans on its new mission

WESTON, Missouri — Patrick Montgomery struggled to find his way after his service in the U.S. Army, he said. Now on a new mission — his venture KC Cattle Company — Montgomery is helping other veterans at a similar crossroads. “The military does some things really well and they do some things really poorly,” he…

KC-area startup earns spot in first-ever AWS accelerator for emerging GovTech companies

A Lee’s Summit-based startup focused on developing tech for the criminal justice industry has been selected for Amazon Web Services’ (AWS) inaugural GovTech Accelerator cohort. eHawk — led by co-founders Bart Cooper and Ted Green, a former bail bondsman and trial attorney — is one of 13 companies tapped for the program. The Kansas City-built…

This virtual jukebox app is bringing live music to Lemonade Park; Here’s how the interactive show works

A one-of-a-kind interactive music festival that allows anyone to be the DJ arrives later this month in Kansas City, shared YouSpin founder and CEO Adell Hendon. The YouSpin Anywhere Music Festival — set for 7 p.m. Sept. 29 at Lemonade Park — is planned as a crowd-driven concert using Hendon’s socially-interactive virtual jukebox app. “People…

Cannabis to canvas: When life goes inside out, Heather Hobbs sees new opportunities 

Life can be messy, Heather Hobbs acknowledged, but cannabis-based wellness products can help bring needed focus, clarity and relief, the now-solo owner of KC Hemp Co. said. “That’s been a big focus of mine, crafting products that can actually help with things like ADHD, and also what I call ‘mom stress’ where you’re constantly up…