Kansas City Royals

Royals roll out the blue carpet for entrepreneurs with campaign focused on small businesses that define KC, its fandom

Editor’s note: The Kansas City Royals is an advertiser with Startland News, although this report was produced independently by Startland News’ nonprofit newsroom. Kansas City’s hometown baseball team is coming to the plate with a new pitch as opening day nears: a marketing campaign for the Royals that puts its city, fans and inspiring local…

Lisa Bledsoe, Tea-Biotics Kombucha

Tea-Biotics bottles $1.2M in quick funding round; taps into thirsty new markets for kombucha

From jar-lined countertops in her kitchen to a 13,000-square-foot facility brimming with brew tanks, Lisa Bledsoe’s mission to pour Kansas City a more refreshing bottle of “booch” is scaling fast, she explained over a freshly tapped glass of her “Beachlife”-flavored kombucha.  “I think it can be an inspiration for younger women or even other women…

Big Fly Gear family

Big Fly Gear takes the field with vintage feel, historic ties to Kansas City baseball

Signing off his live broadcast, Los Angeles Angels broadcaster Victor Rojas receives a phone call. A fresh order of prints — featuring Hank Aaron’s “755” — have just shipped. The Overland Park native’s apparel startup, Big Fly Gear, has been growing steadily since its launch in February, Rojas said. The clothing line, fittingly, celebrates historical…

Chase McAnulty, Charlie Hustle

Charlie Hustle returning to founder’s vintage Jayhawk roots with Lawrence shop

A new retail space in Lawrence will be a homecoming of sorts for Chase McAnulty — taking Charlie Hustle back to the college city where he first wove his passion for vintage threads into a business. “It’s huge for me personally because it’s kind of come full circle,” the founder, owner and CEO said. Overlooking…

Array of pro sports teams kickoff youth benefit initiative in KC

Kansas City is serving as a hub for a national sports initiative that will host a handful of professional teams hoping to help young people around the U.S. Kicking off Friday, Play for Tomorrow — the brainchild of Kauffman Fellow Pankaj Sood — will feature seven professional sports teams from North America, including the Kansas…