VIDEO: Startup leaders talk KC Startup Foundation (plus bloopers)
August 10, 2017 | Bobby Burch and Meghan LeVota
So, what exactly is the Kansas City Startup Foundation?
For one, it is a foundation. Secondly, it involves startups. And last but not least, it serves Kansas City.
If you have ever found yourself confused about what exactly the Kansas City Startup Foundation does and which programs it offers, then the video below is for you.
Since the foundation’s launch in 2016, it has undergone many pivots, shifts and changes.
As you may have read in the news earlier this week, the foundation has merged with Center for Entrepreneurial Ecosystem Development, a for-profit community building organization spearheaded by Adam Arredondo. A former board member at the Kansas City Startup foundation, Arredondo will now serve as the executive director for the nonprofit.
It became clear to Arredondo that both organizations shared the same vision: “to create the most connected startup ecosystem in the world.”
And as Matthew Marcus, the Kansas City Startup Foundation’s director of operations, began to realize, “volunteer efforts alone were only going to take the foundation so far. We needed more resources and more support to champion our efforts.”
Former co-founders of the now-defunct local events startup Local Ruckus, Arredondo and Marcus have been through a lot with each other. The pair also served as integral community builders cultivating the Kansas City Startup Village since about 2012.
In the video below, Arredondo and Marcus share their entrepreneurial journey and detail what to expect from the foundation in the future.
Bloopers
Featured Business
2017 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
Industrial coworking space eyes downtown KC; plans mixed office, warehouse amenities
A Northwest Arkansas-based startup plans to bring a new coworking concept to Kansas City this year — one that combines flexible office and shared warehouse solutions, said CEO Brendan Howell. “We call it industrial coworking,” explained Howell, co-founder and CEO of Loloft . “That’s a term that we’ve coined.” The company is aiming for a…
‘Proud capitalist’ to young social entrepreneurs: It’s OK to make a buck while saving the world
Darcy Howe encouraged budding, would-be founders to think about ways they can effectively scale their mission-driven ideas, drawing on KCRise Fund’s model for social entrepreneurship. “Being socially mission-driven is not mutually exclusive to making money,” Howe, founder and managing director of KCRise Fund, told Enactus students gathered Tuesday during an end-of-year celebration for the University…
Million-dollar corporate gift puts $25M Negro Leagues capital campaign on the board; now you’re on deck
Editor’s note: Bank of America is a financial partner of Startland News, although this report was created independently by the nonprofit newsroom. A historic age of impact is under way, said Bob Kendrick, as Kansas City’s Negro Leagues Baseball Museum unveiled plans for a new, state-of-the art campus backed by a $1 million grant from…
They walked right past us: Small biz owners shocked by low NFL Draft sales, now wary of World Cup
A massive surge in visitors and foot traffic as Kansas City hosted its first NFL Draft failed to score many points outside the event grounds this weekend, as countless small businesses along the city’s urban corridor reported a sharp dip in revenue. “I think we’re all looking at our numbers and everything right now, and…