No MO: Kansas City, St. Louis drop off Inc list of ‘50 Best Cities for Starting a Business’
January 6, 2020 | Startland News Staff
Shots fired. A new ranking by Inc. magazine claims startup powerhouse Austin, Texas, is “leading the nation in job creation and high-growth company density — and delish BBQ.”
Kansas City? Not even on the list.
Inc.’s Surge Cities index — detailing what founders can learn from the 50 Best U.S. Cities for Starting a Business in 2020 — totally omitted KC from its latest ranking after putting the City of Fountains at No. 40 in 2019.
St. Louis (ranked No. 33 in 2019) also dropped from the index.
Austin, Texas
The report considered such elements as job creation, population growth, net business creation, rate of entrepreneurship, wage growth, high-growth company density, and early-stage fundraising deals — all areas where Austin excelled, editors said. (The Texas capital city also ranked No. 1 in 2019.)
“Austin is one of the few markets that is able to support a full range of kinds of startups — like Silicon Valley or New York,” said Joshua Baer, the founder of Capital Factory, the city’s dominant startup incubator, in the Inc. report. “It’s because we have a diverse set of strengths in our background.”
In contrast, Kansas City’s business ecosystem is dominated by the health care industry, which accounts four of its top five private sector employers, according to Inc.
Other peer cities on the list: Boise (No. 5); Nashville (No. 11); Oklahoma City (No. 39); Minneapolis (No. 40); Columbus (No. 44); Tulsa (No. 47); Des Moines (No. 48); and Indianapolis (No. 50).
Click here for the full list of Inc.’s 50 Best U.S. Cities for Starting a Business in 2020.
2020 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
KC officially earns title of ‘Tech Hub,’ opening door to massive federal grant funding
The federal government’s designation of Kansas City as one of 31 U.S. Tech Hubs is expected to further cement the region’s reputation as a leader in vaccine development and biotechnology, said Quinton Lucas, as well as open access to newly launched federal funding opportunities. “The wins keep coming for Kansas City,” said Lucas, mayor of…
LaunchKC liftoff: Meet 13 startups competing for their share of $300K in grant winnings
Kansas City’s premiere grants competition returns in mere weeks with six $50,000 grants on the line, said Becca Castro, and more than dozen startup founders are being interviewed this week to help determine the winners. LaunchKC — a partnership between the Economic Development Corporation of Kansas City, Missouri, and the Downtown Council — plans to…
AltCap Your Biz reveals 10 finalists vying for $25K grand prize at cornerstone GEWKC event
A competition aimed at mobilizing the next generation of entrepreneurs and social innovators — along with awarding more than $40,000 in cash prizes to its winners — announced Monday the 10 finalists vying for its 2023 honors. AltCap Your Biz returns to the stage Thursday, Nov. 16 at Plexpod Westport at Park 39 as part…
Critics challenge DEI as ‘immoral’; this VC has a message for those seeking equity for Black, Brown founders: We are not powerless
Pushing for equity in long-siloed industries might seem obvious to some, said Marcus Whitney, but advocates for change must remember that not everyone is on board — and some are actively working against level the playing field. “I hate to say it, but we have enemies,” Whitney told a crowd gathered Thursday at Vine Street…