Price Chopper

KC grocery chain launches discount store as food prices rise, customers demand value

ChopMore! will offer quality meats, triple-inspected fresh produce, a variety of deli selections and hot foods, top-tier national brands, high-quality but value-based private labels, and bakery goods. “What we promise is — when you walk out the door you are going to save money,” said John Cosentino.

Local grocers integrating AI into shopping experience as small businesses fill carts with tech

A group of Kansas City-area grocers are teaming with an artificial intelligence startup in hopes of making customers’ dollars go farther, Tal Zlotnitsky said, along with harnessing cutting-edge technology to help the businesses themselves stay competitive.

Kasim Hardaway; Photo courtesy of Nam Cu

Social Side Effect: Don’t call Kasim Hardaway an influencer (but do ask him about poké)

Editor’s note: Social Side Effect is an ongoing profile series that identifies the intersection between social influencing and entrepreneurship   Instagram stories are more than temporary snapshots. They’re a growing vehicle for influencer marketing in Kansas City, Kasim Hardaway explained.  “It was never something I set out to do. It kind of just happened,” Hardaway, a…

Austin Wilcox and Wondabeka Ashenafi, SERV Nutrition

Major Kansas City grocery chains stock SERV Nutrition less than a year into business

Doing good is more than just a motto for SERV Nutrition — it’s the state of the startup’s operation seven months into business, Isaac Collins said as the company’s patented protein pods hit shelves at Price Chopper and Hen House stores across the metro.  “Online sales have been going well, but we saw a great…

Ruby Jean's YMCA Kitchen & Juicery

Boosted by Troost, Ruby Jean’s pressing ahead with YMCA, grocery, Atlanta deals

It’s Troost location will be a model for Ruby Jean’s expansion, said Chris Goode, but the juicery’s growth won’t be limited to standalone, brick-and-mortar sites. “Ideally, the way we truly scale is our wholesale model,” said Goode, founder of the health and fitness-focused Kansas City-born business. “I’m in talks right now, trying to get it…