Latest Stories
Elite investors at exclusive CEO retreat: Don’t waste time; sell us on your billion-dollar idea
Trying to land the backing of a venture capital firm? Throw your pitch deck out the window, Chris Olsen advised a select group of Kansas City CEOs. “A lot of times founders will come and give us their pitch and they’ll start going through it and [they’re telling us] they’re profitable in 18-months. And we’ll…
Hyped from high school: Blue Valley teens among startup cash winners at K-State challenge
Four Overland Park high school students have landed cash infusions totaling more than $7,000 for their ongoing startup ventures. Local winners of the Kansas Entrepreneurship Challenge — supported by Network KS, sponsored by the Kansas Masonic Foundation, and hosted by Kansas State University — included: Drone Estate founders Austin Jones and Hunter Vasquez, Blue Valley West…
‘More is better’ TrueAccord CEO says as Silicon Valley startup plans for 150 KC jobs
TrueAccord is “furiously hiring” to jumpstart the San Francisco-based startup’s intense expansion plan now supplemented by a growing Lenexa office, said Ohad Samet. “We’ve been very successful [in Silicon Valley], but at some point we realized that we really needed to blow up,” said Samet, co-founder and CEO of the debt recovery startup, which recently…
Blade & Timber opening new axe-throwing experience at Power & Light in late summer
Blade & Timber hopes to stick its cutting-edge axe-throwing concept in the bullseye of Kansas City entertainment, opening a new 11-lane facility in the Power & Light District by the end of the summer. “We are excited to continue growing our brand nationally, while staying true to our roots,” said Ryan Henrich, co-founder of Blade…
Mobility Designed boosted by $1.7M in funding, planning new product launch this summer
Editor’s note: This article is sponsored by the University of Missouri-Kansas City’s Regnier Institute, but was independently produced on behalf of Startland News. Pressure to succeed has only increased since Kansas City-based Mobility Designed found its footing as the first new design for crutches since the Civil War, said co-founders Max and Liliana Younger. What…
Double-clicks to dollars: ULAH duo aims to convert Insta following into ruggedly chic shoppers
A dream has become brick-and-mortar reality for Buck Wimberly and Joey Mendez, the duo taking ULAH from Instagram underdog to Westwood success story. “We wanted the brand to feel sophisticated, accessible and friendly,” explained Wimberly, co-owner of ULAH — a men’s apparel and lifestyle store, tucked within the Woodside Village Shops along Rainbow Boulevard. A…
Zach Pettet: Henry Bloch gave KC a legacy to believe in; now it’s our turn to make him proud
Editor’s note: Zach Anderson Pettet is vice president of FinTech strategy at nbkc bank and managing director of Fountain City FinTech. Opinions expressed in this commentary are the author’s alone. Henry Bloch made an immeasurable impact on Kansas City. The H&R Block co-founder’s April 23 death shook many of us; though we knew it was…
Super Dispatch hires experienced startup driver as COO to navigate its global growth map for 2019 and beyond
From the fifth employee at Webmail.us to No. 50 for KC-based Super Dispatch, a startup leader with a long track record of building innovative operations has joined the executive team alongside founder and CEO Bek Abdullayev. “Super Dispatch is taking off,” said Ben Hubbard, the company’s new chief operating officer. “They have things figured out…
Thou Mayest acquires Quay Coffee; three new locations to stretch footprint from River Market to Crossroads to Nelson-Atkins
A Kansas City coffee brand just got bolder, announcing the acquisition of another coffee company and plans to open an entirely new concept in the Crossroads. Thou Mayest is now operating Quay Coffee — with its two locations in River Market and at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art — confirmed Bo Nelson, co-founder of Thou Mayest…
$75K up for grabs in student pitch competition backed by Kansas Masons, K-State
A cross-section of student entrepreneurs from across the state of Kansas are set to win big, Tuesday — if they can level with a room full of sharks at the K-State College of Business. Testing the power in their pitches, the Kansas Entrepreneurship Challenge is expected to award student innovators from 65 high schools and the…
