Show Me Jobs report: Young firms created 44,000 jobs, drove majority of Missouri hiring in 2018
September 18, 2019 | Rashi Shrivastava
Startups created more than 44,000 jobs in Missouri in 2018, accounting for nearly 80 percent of all new jobs in the state, according to a new report from MOSourceLink.
The Show Me Jobs report is a broader version of a similar report focused on the Kansas City market. MOSourceLink, a nonprofit resource provider for entrepreneurs and small businesses across the state, compiled the report based on data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages.
“When we were able to tell people how many jobs were created by small firms in Kansas City, it really made a difference in terms of inspiring other people to think about entrepreneurship and to generate support for entrepreneurs in the community,” said Kate Hodel, who works on special projects for MOSourceLink.
Click here to read the full report.
The report defined startups as first-time employers that have fewer than 20 employees. It presented data related to job creation, wages and the industry concentration of early-stage companies in Missouri.
First-time employers created more than 190,000 jobs in the last four years, according to the report. That accounted for about four of every five new jobs in the state and 7 percent of total employment in Missouri.

Jobs created by the tech sector continued to grow since 2014, the data revealed. Last year, new tech firms created more than 2,000 jobs, which was higher than the average between 2014 and 2018. Tech firms also paid wages that were about $50,000 more than the state’s average wage.

Missouri was home to more than 19,000 startups in 2018, the report said. Though clustered in high-population regions like Kansas City and St. Louis, new jobs were distributed across the state. As of 2018, the health care and social assistance industry produced the most startups.
“I think it’s important to realize that these jobs are being created all across the state, by all different kinds of businesses,” Hodel said.

This story was produced through a collaboration between Missouri Business Alert and Startland News.
Featured Business

2019 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
KC inventor’s untimely death leaves legacy of fearlessness, unfinished vision
Paul Francis pioneered fitness tech for NASA, commercialized it with Bowflex, then raised $4 million on Kickstarter: How the OYO founder’s unexpected death this month cut his storied entrepreneurial journey short — but left a lasting impression on the people who worked alongside him. Former colleagues are remembering the late Paul Francis as a uniquely…
Pitches and peaches: Hy-Vee awards $30K piece of the $50K prize pie to family-run cobbler company
Denisha Jones sweetened Hy-Vee’s OpportUNITY Inclusive Business Summit and pitch competition this week with her ready-to-bake cobblers. Her pitch (and peaches) secured the $30,000 grand prize. “Every time Thanksgiving comes around, I always crave my grandmother’s cobbler. During the pandemic, I was unsuccessful in finding a cobbler as good as my grandmother’s, so I went…
Meet six newly funded startups Digital Sandbox KC is making more fundable tomorrow
Newly awarded funds are expected to help six more companies scale their fledgling startups past the proof-of-concept stage, said Jill Meyer, touting Digital Sandbox KC’s track record of making startups and their products more fundable once they’re built. “Digital Sandbox KC is one of the Kansas City metro’s rare early-stage funds and provides vital support…
Coming soon: 8 new tech startups set for ‘lucky No. 7’ Pure Pitch Rally spot-cash event
From nutrition to logistics, local entrepreneurs continue innovating solutions that could result in Kansas City’s next unicorn, said Karen Fenaroli. Eight such potentially game-changing tech startups are expected to showcase their ideas next month, she announced Tuesday. The seventh annual Pure Pitch Rally is set to return Oct. 17 at the Burns & McDonnell Global…
