Digital Sandbox’s newest cohort: Hip hop health startup, moving app
January 6, 2017 | Bobby Burch
Digital Sandbox KC on Friday announced its support of two new Kansas City tech firms.
Led by entrepreneur Jeff Shackelford, the Kansas City-based incubator welcomed H3TV and MovinHouz to its program.
Digital Sandbox invests up to $25,000 in area businesses for specific projects that help the firms secure additional funding. The organization has now supported a total 79 proof-of-concept projects and helped them raise almost $30 million in investment capital.
With a focus on education and health, H3TV created online programming to empower young audiences to make positive changes to their lives. Founders Reggie Gray and Roy Scott created “H3,” which is a new genre of children’s music that stands for “Healthy Hip Hop.” The music aims to be a learning tool to help children improve academic outcomes, physical health and social-emotional development.
“In order for our company to truly scale, we had to completely develop our technology,” Scott said in a release. “And the funding from Digital Sandbox KC has put us in a position to take H3TV to the next level! Receiving this funding will allow us to improve our mobile and online video platform, making it more seamless for educators and students to utilize our services.”
MovinHouz created a mobile app with which customers can upload photos of each room and major items. The photos will then be seen by multiple vetted movers who will each submit a moving quote.
“Receiving this award from Digital Sandbox KC allows MovinHouz to enhance our offering, specifically our MovinPic technology, which positions us to provide greater value to the overall moving industry,” MovinHouz CEO Dominic Klobe said in a release.
Digital Sandbox welcomes applications on a rolling basis and evaluates startups every eight weeks. Launched in February 2013, the Digital Sandbox KC has worked with more than 300 entrepreneurs and early-stage companies across the metro area. Visit www.digitalsandboxkc.com for more information.
2017 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
Superstars pack KC Chamber celebration with gratitude; thankful for a space to belong when many feel lost
Julie Cortes beamed as she took in the energy of Kansas City’s small business community Tuesday evening — surrounded by hundreds of her fellow Small Business Superstars and a crowd eager to build an emerging spirit of entrepreneurship. “It feels so amazing to be here,” Cortes, founder of Freelance Rockstar, said from inside the packed…
Ixtapa closes JoCo favorite; owner says he won’t compromise family recipes or up prices as food, rent costs rise
Ixtapa Fine Mexican Cuisine has closed in Johnson County after five years. Co-owner Victor Esqueda blamed rising costs — rent, ingredients and more — for the closing of the restaurant at 7305 W. 95th St. in Overland Park, near the sprawling Shamrock Trading Company campus. “Everything has increased so much — food, alcohol 20 to…
Coffee cluster percolating on one Troost block; will business support the buzz of six spaces to sip?
A new stretch of coffee shops in the 5500 block of Troost will test the caffeine tolerance of folks seeking a fix. Six options soon fill out the menu along this bustling corridor. Blackhole Bakery, High Hopes Ice Cream and The Littlest Bake Shop currently offer coffee along with their core menu items. But Blackhole…
Rally unifies voices amid attacks on immigrants, LGBT+ rights; now it’s time to make noise, organizers say
As anti-immigrant rhetoric and policies seeking to dismantle DEI efforts ramp up, Danny Soriano has seen inquiries and communication to his digital media business noticeably slow down, the Latino entrepreneur said. “Clients [suddenly seem] deterred from going with me — as opposed to somebody who’s not of color or white,” explained Soriano, the founder of…