Bevy of area businessmen are EY award finalists
April 27, 2016 | Bobby Burch
Eight Kansas City-area businessmen are now finalists for a national entrepreneurship award.
Ranging from techies to whiskey-makers, the regional finalists of the EY Entrepreneur of the Year awards recognize those “who are building and leading successful, growing and dynamic businesses.” Sponsored in part by the Kansas City-based Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, EY operates its award programs in more than 145 cities across more than 60 countries.
A group of judges selected a total of 22 entrepreneurs in the Central Midwest region, which is comprised of Kansas and Missouri. Winners of the awards will be announced June 16 at Kansas City’s Midland Theatre.
Finalists from the Kansas City-area are:
- Andy Rieger, Kansas City-based J. Rieger & Co.
- Neal Sharma, Overland Park-based DEG
- Case Dorman, Overland Park-based Fiorella’s Jack Stack Barbecue
- Kelly Mann, Lenexa-based Mediware Information Systems
- Chris Long, Mission Woods-based Palmer Square Capital Management
- Nathan Ferman, Grandview-based Perfection Floor Tile
- David Chinnery, Blue Springs-based Adams Dairy Bank
- Bob Bagby, Liberty-based B&B Theatres
Three Kansas City-area businessmen nabbed the award last year: Jody Brazil, Overland Park-based Firemon; Bill Zahner, Kansas City-based A Zahner Company; and Matthew Perry, Kansas City-based GENESYS Systems Integrator.
Featured Business

2016 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
2017 Under the Radar: Happy Food Co meals loaded with local
Editor’s note: Startland News picked 10 early-stage firms to spotlight for its annual Under the Radar startups list. The following is one of 2017’s companies. To view the full list, click here. Trends are fleeting. The ability to easily craft locally sourced meals at home shouldn’t be, Jeff Glasco said. “Food is a dynamic market,”…
ECJC boot camp arming startups for angel investment round
Startups enlisted in the war for capital know the struggle: a perilous gap between seed and success. The Enterprise Center in Johnson County’s new investment boot camp aims to arm them for battle. The Pitch Perfect mini-accelerator program focuses on helping established startups advance to the next round of development by teaching such skills as…
eSports founder: High school gaming ‘not just for jocks anymore’
When Mason Mullenioux attended Blue Springs High School in the early 2000s, he — like many teenagers — wanted to find a place where he belonged. “I was decently athletic, but when I tried out for tennis and basketball I didn’t make the team,” Mullenioux said. “But, I was always very good at ‘World of…
Techstars Spotlight: Software platform courts easy-to-manage litigation data
Amid a digitized world, the legal industry is among the “last frontier” for tech, Thadd Hale said. “There is a lot of opportunity in the legal space,” said Hale, co-founder and CEO of Vector Legal Method. “Litigation as a whole is not very structured or standardized. As you can imagine, lack of standardization can be…
