Mr. K Award finalists: RFP360, KC Bier Co., Charlie Hustle among Chamber’s Top 10 Small Businesses
April 8, 2019 | Startland News Staff
From one of Kansas City’s most popular breweries to a startup that streamlines the RFP process to an apparel company known for its big heart, 10 small businesses received surprise visits Friday — each now a finalist for the prestigious Mr. K Award.
“The Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce showered us with confetti today when they hand delivered our Top 10 Small Business award! #FeelingFortunate #CelebrateSmallBiz #Innovation #Growth #BuildingABetterKC,” posted RFP360, a Kansas City-based firm innovating the RFP process.
RFP360 was named one of Startland’s Kansas City Startups to Watch in 2018. Click here to check out its progress over the course of the previous year, and here to read about the hiring of the company’s first CEO.
Charlie Hustle, Top 10 Small Business honoree, Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce
Fellow Top Small Businesses KC Bier Co. and T-shirt trendsetter Charlie Hustle also have startup roots. Click here to read about the brewery’s strategy for expansion, and here to learn more about the hometown apparel company’s full-court business offensive.
The Chamber’s Top 10 Small Business honorees were selected from a pool of 80 nominees. One will be chosen for the Mr. K Award — named for legendary Kansas City entrepreneur Ewing Marion Kauffman — which is presented to a company that not only shows growth and sustainability, but also has a record of giving back to the community.
A winner is expected to be announced at the Chamber’s May 23 Small Business Luncheon.
Lead Bank was awarded the distinction in 2018.
The full Top 10 Small Businesses list includes:
- Agforce Transport — third-party logistics and supply chain provider.
- Charlie Hustle — vintage T-shirt company.
- IBC, Inc. — commercial construction firm.
- KC Bier Co. — Kansas City-based, German-style craft brewery.
- Lever1 — integrated professional employer organization services.
- Odimo — collaborative architectural and planning firm.
- RFP360 — full-circle RFP management solution.
- Ripple Glass — state-of-the-art glass recycling.
- TREKK Design Group — woman-owned civil engineering firm.
- VeriShip — parcel shipping intelligence company.
Honored to be recognized today as a @kcchamber #KansasCity Top 10 Small Business of the Year. Thanks to all of #KC for your ongoing support of #KCBierCo! Prost! https://t.co/NsokflPmYO
— KC Bier Co. (@KCBierCo) April 5, 2019
Featured Business
2019 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
Biotech startup’s latest partnership gets its UniPen into the hands of more pharmacists
A new strategic partnership for Love Lifesciences is expected to leverage its core product — a safe, self-administered injection medication delivery system — to new groups of like-minded, innovation-first companies, said Nick Love. The Overland Park biotech startup on Wednesday announced the deal with the Alliance for Pharmacy Compounding (APC), a leading trade organization, to…
Una Mas Empanadas folds authentic Argentinian flavors into new restaurant spot at Parlor
Expanding Silvia Herrera’s business from a food truck in Gardner to one of Kansas City’s most active and eclectic food hubs brings the Buenos Aires-born entrepreneur — and her grandmother’s 50-year-old handcrafted empanada recipe — to an even wider, more diverse audience, she said. “Our empanadas are more than just food,” Herrera said. “They represent…
It’s not too late to preserve KC’s Black-owned restaurants (or to enjoy Black Feast Week)
The recent closures of Soiree, The Krave, and Privee — Black-owned restaurants that each became a staple of Kansas City’s evolving food scene — leave a clear void that can’t be ignored, said Ryan Sorrell. An initiative to help save local culinary should-be hotspots in similar danger wraps this week, but the work to promote and…
Ancestry.com founder-turned-AI evangelist says rapidly advancing tech can uplift humanity, families
People across the globe are caught in an internet malaise, said Paul Allen, and tech visionaries’ response should be to renew humans’ dependence on faith and family and friendship and local community. One of their most critical tools, he said: decidedly non-human solutions from the rapidly evolving landscape of artificial intelligence. Allen — founder of…