10 gift exchange ideas from Kansas City startups
November 27, 2019 | Startland News Staff
Editor’s note: Below you’ll find a list of 10 ideas for your next office or family holiday gift exchange — each from a Kansas City startup or maker. Click here to check out the rest of Startland News’ 2019 Gift Guide.
wlle drink sweater
Made by Sandlot Goods, the WLLE drink sweater uses the insulating power of wool to keep drinks cool. Click here to read more about Sandlot Goods and WLLE.
Price: $13
Where to buy: Made in KC or online
Maker: Chad Hickman, wlle, Sandlot Goods
Follow: wlleusa, sandlotgoods
Craft Beer Jerky
Craft Beer Jerky is made using local, craft beers including Boulevard’s Tank 7.
Price: $10
Where to buy: Made in KC or online
Maker: Danny Kueser, Chase Schaffter, Craft Beer Jerky
Follow: craftbeerjerky_
Positive People Posse mug
Handcrafted by local Kansas City Maker Mckenzie Grabish Stanley of Driftwood Ceramics, each mug is imperfect — just like people. Fun Fact: This product features the iconic logo of Kansas City’s Positive People Posse.
Price: $20
Where to buy: Made in KC or online
Maker: Mckenzie Grabish Stanley, Driftwood Ceramics, Postive People Posse
Follow: positivepeopleposse
Green Bee Tea Towels
With 100 designs in multiple colors and styles, Green Bee Tea Towels are hand-printed on 100 percent cotton flour sack material.
Price: $5-$10
Where to buy: Midcoast Modern, Amy’s Hallmarks, online
Maker: Rena Krouse, Green Bee Tea Towels
Follow: greenbeeteatowels
Monarch wallet
A newly redesigned, slim, three-pocket, hand-sewn wallet with dual-sided push card slots produced by Sandlot Goods. Click here to learn more about Sandlot Goods and the redesign of the monarch wallet.
Price: $45
Where to buy: Made in KC or online
Maker: Chad Hickman, Sandlot Goods
Follow: sandlotgoods
‘Find Your Toddler Ambition’ book
Touting a different approach to entrepreneurship, Kansas City startup founder Jy’Juan Maze offers guidance on how leaders can find their “toddler ambition” and apply it to building a business. Click here to read a Startland News Q&A with Jy Maze.
Price: $13
Where to buy: Online
Maker: Jy’Juan Maze, Maze Freight Solutions, Maze Publications
Follow: jyjuan_n_chrg
Power Frother + Creamer
A durable, electric milk frother, pair the Power Frother with any of Omega Power Creamer’s keto coffee creamers or the Omega Power Creamer bundle. Click here to read more about Omega Power Creamer’s relocation to Kansas City from St. Louis.
Price: $18-$20
Where to buy: Online, Walmart
Maker: Omega Power Creamer
Follow: powercreamer
Megh Makes Art yoga mat
Megh Makes Art — and yoga mats. Bold colors and the signature, Megh Knappenberger Art, palette style add personality to the traditional yoga mat. Click here to read more about Knappenberger.
Price: N/A
Where to buy: Made in KC Marketplace on the Country Club Plaza
Maker: Megh Knappenberger, Megh Makes Art
Follow: meghmakesart
Made in KC Boozy Box
Each Boozy Box contains two pieces of glassware and your choice of J. Rieger and Co. whiskey, KC Wineworks wine, Amigoni Winery wine or Boulevard beer.
Price: $35-$65
Where to buy: Made in KC Marketplace on the Country Club Plaza, Made in KC Cafe downtown
Maker: J Rieger & Co., KC Wineworks, Amigoni Urban Winery, Boulevard Brewing Company, Made in KC
Follow: madeinkc_
N-Gage Grips
A Kansas City crafted solution to pain and discomfort in weight lifting. From the maker: Humans didn’t evolve to lift heavy, perfectly-straight barbells. N-Gage Grips make barbell movements more natural by putting your hands in a slightly more neutral position.
Price: $40
Where to buy: Online
Maker: Matt Leadbetter, N-Gage
Follow: ngagegrips
The Startland News 2019 Gift Guide is possible thanks to support from the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, a private, nonpartisan foundation that works together with communities in education and entrepreneurship to create uncommon solutions and empower people to shape their futures and be successful.
For more information, visit www.kauffman.org and connect at www.twitter.com/kauffmanfdn and www.facebook.com/kauffmanfdn
Startland News 2019 Gift Guide
• 10 ways to wear (or gift) KC’s maker scene
• 5 Kansas City-crafted gifts for kids
Featured Business

2019 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
Digital Health KC debuts Lumi Awards with star-powered roster of tech honorees
Healthcare is a team sport and Kansas City has all the players, said Dick Flanigan, heaping praise on the region’s innovators at the intersection of healthcare and technology. “We have key entries in every sector, allowing us to tap into these companies and individuals to truly form a winning team,” said Flanigan, president of Digital…
Shoppers lined the block to visit their vintage clothing store; now they’ve curated a new, larger space in KC’s West Bottoms
As brothers Thomas and Reade Rex open the doors to their relocated and expanded vintage clothing store this weekend in Kansas City’s West Bottoms, the event will be a culmination of years of hard work, passion, and a shared vision — plus significant customer support and loyalty, they said. “We’ve always done things together,” said…
World Cup will be KC’s biggest-ever event, top founder says (and local businesses can still get in the game)
When Neal Sharma co-founded DEG at the turn of the millennium, Kansas City felt like it had an inferiority complex, he said. Fast forward to 2024, and the city is teeming with extrinsic validation, he added. The exited founder-turned-civic leader hopes being a World Cup host city in 2026 pushes Kansas City to take a…
ProX names equity-centered leader as first executive director of its popular student intern program
The new leader of ProX — one of the largest paid internship programs in the country — is expected to be instrumental in taking the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation affiliate to the next level, said Dr. Bill Nicely. ProX and the Kauffman Foundation on Thursday announced the appointment of Solissa Franco-McKay — a longtime supporter…











