WATCH: Faces of KC entrepreneurship find strength in numbers, community resources
April 5, 2019 | Startland News Staff
A new video from KCSourceLink highlights the faces of Kansas City entrepreneurship — featuring makers, innovators, tech founders and social entrepreneurs — and their connection to the resource network and ecosystem infrastructure in Kansas City.
“It takes very special people to be able to put everything on the line,” says Reggie Gray, executive director of Black Privilege, a nonprofit movement rooted in a mobile app that connects black businesspeople and encourages spending within the black community. “Most of us will never make the big money, but it’s not always about the money — it’s about what fulfills us. It’s about being able to make a difference. Being able to build relationships.”
Gray is featured in the video alongside such well-known startup community members as Andy Kallenbach, founder of LendingStandard; Philip Hickman, founder of PlaBook; Kyle Smith, founder of Determination Incorporated; Jeff Rohr, founder of SquareOffs; and Matt Condon, founder of Bardavon Health Innovations — each sharing insights about the city and its support structure.
SquareOffs was named one of Startland’s Startups to Watch in 2019; Bardavon was one of the Startups to Watch in 2018.
“It’s not redefining Kansas City. It’s re-establishing who we are,” says Condon in the video. “We’re an entrepreneurial community. And we’re cowboys, and dreamers, and all the things that make that journey possible.”
The video was released to coincide with the publication of KCSourceLink’s We Create KC 2019 report. Click here to read more about the report’s findings.
Check out the video, which also includes commentary from Joe Vazquez, Vazquez Commercial Contracting; Marquita Miller, Five Star Tax & Business Solutions; Nick Ward-Bopp, Maker Village KC; CiCi Rojas, Tico Productions; Gigi Jones, Gigi’s Kale Chips; and Catina Taylor, Dreams KC.
Featured Business
2019 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
Food delivery service UberEATS launches in Kansas City
Ride-hailing service Uber announced Tuesday that it’s launched its food delivery service in the Kansas City area. UberEATS — a standalone app offered by Uber — allows users to order food from more than 70 Kansas City restaurants, including BRGR Kitchen + Bar, The Bite, Dixon’s Chili, Taco Republic, Smokey’s on the Boulevard and others.…
Digital Sandbox adds two startups to Independence program
Digital Sandbox KC announced Tuesday that it selected Drones4Hire and Hidden Abilities for its Independence, Missouri program. In addition to up to $20,000 in project development funds via Digital Sandbox, the program gives the startups access to workspace at WerksLab and business support via the Ennovation Center, a business incubator located in Independence. Drones4Hire’s platform…
UMKC and Rockhurst HS team up to add entrepreneurial thinking to curriculum
Although education innovation continues to grow in Kansas City, there is a visible gap between the “school world” and the “real world,” said Greg Owsley. “The school world and real world shouldn’t be separate entities — they should be connected,” said Owsley, STEAM director at Rockhurst High School. “It’s a very exciting time to be…
Made in KC opening two new stores in heart of city
T-shirts are great, Tyler Enders said, but local makers have so much more to offer. Retailer Made in KC is rapidly expanding its footprint across the metro to help Kansas City-based vendors reach an even broader customer base, said Enders, Made in KC co-founder. The company — which carries in its stores everything from locally…