Latoya Sirls
‘You never know who’s watching’: Marketplace prize winner refused to quit; now she’s one of KC’s star founders
Stage after stage, LaToya Ebony Sirls delivers her company pitch. She tweaks the delivery, adjusts certain words and details to address past judges’ questions, but her overall confidence in herself and the product never outwardly wavers, she said.
Meet the competition: AltCap Your Biz unveils finalists for pitch event, $60K in awards
A popular fall pitch competition for emerging entrepreneurs is returning to Union Station in November with AltCap today announcing 10 finalists for $60,000 in cash prizes — ranging from Kansas City’s first mobile matcha cart to specialty wellness retailers and a dog toy innovator. “The AltCap Your Biz Pitch Competition is so much more than…
Pipeline adds top founders to its network: Meet 14 fellows tasked with building the Midwest together
The newest class of Pipeline fellows embodies the elite Midwest network’s founder-first focus on industry-agnostic collaboration and support, said Melissa Vincent, noting the power of tapping barrier-breaking perspectives to solve problems and build world-class companies side by side. “We have an incredible depth of entrepreneurs who are all focused on building high-growth, scalable businesses, but…
Resilience pays off as retail incubator opens doors; Meet the first featured founders at PHKC
Launching a retail incubator in Midtown Kansas City — a physical space targeted for overlooked and under-resourced entrepreneurs — The Porter House KC faced many of the same challenges as emerging small businesses, said Miranda Schultz, but ultimately the effort made it to opening day. “It’s been nice to go through our own trial and…
