Startups Stories

LendingStandard plans innovation upgrade with $2.5M investment from Flyover Capital

An investment in innovation has landed Kansas City-based LendingStandard $2.5 million in investment funds following the close of a Series A funding round led by Flyover Capital, CEO Andy Kallenbach said. “These are folks that are well-known in Kansas City and have had software businesses in the past, and that’s a really rare combination,” Kallenbach…

Kyle Smith, Determination, Incorporated

KCultivator Q&A: Kyle J Smith talks serious work, socks with sandals, pickled pig brains

Editor’s note: KCultivators is a lighthearted profile series to highlight people who are meaningfully enriching Kansas City’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. The KCultivator Series is sponsored by WeWork Corrigan Station, a modern twist on Kansas City office space. A place to live, work, and play — three ingredients for a new life, said Kyle J. Smith, founder…

KCSourceLink All-Star Voting Winners

New five-year government grant, matching funds will help KCSourceLink fill gaps, build inclusivity

The payoff from a new five-year grant to KCSourceLink will most immediately be seen in a refreshed website with a more streamlined user experience for doers, makers, creators and entrepreneurs searching for help in taking the next — or first — step in building a business. “Our goal is to strengthen the fundamental building blocks of a…

Toby Rush, Zoloz, Ant Financial

Toby Rush on emerging blockchain: Layers of trust slowly building behind the scenes

Much like companies’ web pages in the mid-1990s, blockchain isn’t yet consumer-ready, said Toby Rush. “But [development is] going to move at an accelerated pace,” said Rush, CEO of Zoloz and senior director of international technology investments at Ant Financial. “We’re over 20 years later from ’96, and I think you’ll see [blockchain] move and…

Lula

Lula partners with Platinum Realty to help home buyers, sellers find quality contractors

New homeowners — and even those selling — need contractors, said Bo Lais. It’s a reality understood by Platinum Realty, a new partner for home services tech startup Lula. “Lula is really excited about assisting Platinum Realty agents throughout that process because new home owners are constantly asking their real estate agents who they should…