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
This ‘Tiny Town’ just opened on Spring Hill’s Main Street; here’s how it’s connecting kids growing up in KC’s urban sprawl
SPRING HILL, Kansas — Two sister companies on the edge of the Kansas City metro are now offering a scoop of ice cream with a drizzle of imagination on top. Three years ago, Dale and JoAnn Romano opened Pop’s Sweet Shop on Main Street in downtown Spring Hill, a nostalgic ice cream parlor that also…
Serial entrepreneur Matt Watson completes strategic buy-out of Full Scale
A prominent, twice-exited Kansas City entrepreneur has acquired full control of a company he co-founded five years ago — with plans to expand its leadership team and grow its employee count from 300 to 500 in 2025. Matt Watson announced Monday the completion of a strategic buyout of his co-founder, Matt DeCoursey, at Kansas City,…
He dreams of a pickle truck driving through your neighborhood; How word of mouth fuels Ritchie Cherry’s Good Ass Pickles
Ritchie Cherry has good friends to thank for his latest business venture, Good Ass Pickles, he shared. After trying his sweet and spicy garlic pickles during the pandemic, he said, they encouraged him to sell them — with one friend even buying him a case of jars to fill. “They all just started me off,…
KC’s first Hispanic beer company faces make-or-break holiday season; this popup could tap its potential
A holiday-time popup location for Kansas City’s first Hispanic brewing company offers a taste of what’s to come if Rizoma Liquid Creations gains the support it needs for a brick-and-mortar space of its own, said Damon Arredondo. “We can’t get the capital at this moment, so doing these events allows us to bring in potential…