Startup Weekend returns to Kansas City in June
April 18, 2017 | Bobby Burch
People often ruminate for years on a startup idea, calculating risk, analyzing a market and perfecting a pitch.
With Startup Weekend, that course of contemplative construction is distilled into 48 hours of ideation, iteration and presentation. And after a year hiatus, the event is returning to Kansas City for wild weekend of founding fury.
Startup Weekend is set for June 9 – 11 at the yet-to-be announced Techstars Kansas City offices. Locally, past winners of Startup Weekend have included 1 Minute Candidate, LoopLogiq, Zaarly and others.
We spoke with Startup Weekend organizer John Coler about the event, its needs and tips for teams.
What is startup weekend?
Startup Weekend is a 48-hour event for developers, designers and entrepreneurially-minded people to get together and create a startup over the course of a weekend. We provide resources via facilitators and mentors to assist teams and they bring expertise from various industries in the Kansas City community.
What kind of people are needed?
We’re open to anyone that has that entrepreneurial drive. We want to do our best to get developers and designers to attend. We need to build things and that’s who we’re hoping for this time around. … We need more developer and design talent. We can get that form startup community and from corporate employees looking to make that entrepreneurial jump.
What types of teams perform well?
It varies. You need a team from a variety of categories, developers, designers and non-technical talent. They need to experiment over the weekend, make prototypes and do customer validation. The teams that typically perform the best are the ones that can get a paying customer over the course of a weekend. I really think anyone can be successful as long as they follow guidelines from the judges.
Any advice for teams?
Come in well rested. It’s a long weekend. Put out feelers on who will be attending. … Do some reading up on lean startup methodology and other resources to understand that. Surf online to see what’s been done before in other Startup Weekends and what’s worked for them. If you’re coming in with a particular idea, do research on what’s out there.
Featured Business
2017 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
Money in the tank: Health tech startup lands Pure Pitch Rally’s biggest catch of the day
The support of Kansas City’s entrepreneurial community — and the “land sharks” at this year’s Pure Pitch Rally — means the world to MedCurate founder and CEO Ashley McClellan, she shared. “They have just wrapped their arms around me as I’ve transitioned from corporate America to the entrepreneurship space,” she continued. “I’m very grateful for…
KC officially earns title of ‘Tech Hub,’ opening door to massive federal grant funding
The federal government’s designation of Kansas City as one of 31 U.S. Tech Hubs is expected to further cement the region’s reputation as a leader in vaccine development and biotechnology, said Quinton Lucas, as well as open access to newly launched federal funding opportunities. “The wins keep coming for Kansas City,” said Lucas, mayor of…
LaunchKC liftoff: Meet 13 startups competing for their share of $300K in grant winnings
Kansas City’s premiere grants competition returns in mere weeks with six $50,000 grants on the line, said Becca Castro, and more than dozen startup founders are being interviewed this week to help determine the winners. LaunchKC — a partnership between the Economic Development Corporation of Kansas City, Missouri, and the Downtown Council — plans to…
AltCap Your Biz reveals 10 finalists vying for $25K grand prize at cornerstone GEWKC event
A competition aimed at mobilizing the next generation of entrepreneurs and social innovators — along with awarding more than $40,000 in cash prizes to its winners — announced Monday the 10 finalists vying for its 2023 honors. AltCap Your Biz returns to the stage Thursday, Nov. 16 at Plexpod Westport at Park 39 as part…