Startups pitching this week to earn finalists spots for ‘Mr K’ Small Biz of the Year award

Innovation-led companies are going mainstream in Kansas City with an increasing number of product, experience and tech-based startups named as candidates for the top small business prize in the city: the Mr. K Award.

Such well-known names to Startland News readers as Cherry, Chicken N Pickle, Crema, Plexpod, J. Rieger & Co., McLain’s Markets, Messenger Coffee, Pro Athlete, Shark Off, Social Apex Media, Stellar Image Studios and Swell Spark (the makers of Blade & Timber, Breakout KC and Sinkers) are vying for 10 finalist positions for the Small Business of the Year honor, according to the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce.

Jasmine and Amber Baudler, Stellar Image Studios

They’ll be competing this week among 36 companies during the Chamber’s two-day, virtual 2020 Small Business Celebration Candidates’ Showcase. Companies range widely from Kansas City sustainable architecture powerhouse BNIM and manufacturing leader Ultra-Tech Aerospace to growing marketing agencies like Crux KC , Native Digital and Signal Theory.

“Join us for a fast-paced, Shark Tank-style virtual event,” the Chamber said in an announcement. “Candidates will have five minutes to present their business and take questions from our anonymous judges while viewers across the Greater Kansas City region watch on.”

The showcase is broken into two sets of 18 presenters across Wednesday and Thursday.

Click here to register for Wednesday’s event, or here to register for Thursday’s showcase. Programs run 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. both days. Check out a full lineup of presenters below.

Ten finalists are expected to be announced in the runup to an Oct. 1 virtual small business celebration featuring a panel of the top 10 companies’ CEOs. Click here to register.

The selection season culminates with the Oct. 15 virtual Small Business Celebration Awards Luncheon where the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation is set to announce the Small Business of the Year “Mr. K Award” — named for Ewing Marion Kauffman, known widely as “Mr. K.”

Winners of the 2020 Diverse Small Business Award, the Legacy of Kansas City Award, the Emerging Business Award, and the Weida Award for International Business recipients also are expected to be revealed at the virtual event.

Click here to learn more about the Oct. 15 Small Business Celebration Awards Luncheon.

The luncheon and award season typically are organized in the spring, but were delayed amid COVID-19 precautions and restrictions. The previous celebration was hosted in May 2019 at the Kansas City Marriott Downtown Muehlebach Tower Imperial Ballroom.

Click here to read about the 2019 Entrepreneur of the Year Award winner, Rhonda Dolan, founder of Udo.

A full list of presenters at this week’s showcase include:

11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 19

Gerald Smith, Plexpod

• AlphaGraphics
• Amply Media
• Bay Boy Specialty Sandwiches
• BNIM
• Cherry
• Chicken N Pickle
• Crema
• Dickson-Diveley Ortho
• KJO Media
• Midtown Signs
• Plexpod
• Prairie Elder Care
• Sethmar Transportation
• Stellar Image Studios
• The Purple Guys
• Traders Insurance Company
• Ultra-Tech Aerospace
• Willoughby Design

11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 20

Mark Josey, Social Apex Media

Sam Kulikov, Social Apex Media

• BMG Advisors
• Core Catalysts
• Crux KC
• HCI Energy
• J. Rieger & Co.
• Lon Lane’s Inspired Occasions
• McLain’s Markets
• Meridian Business,LLC
• Messenger Coffee, Ibis Bakery
• Native Digital
• Parson & Associates
• Pro Athlete, Inc
• Rising Construction
• Serenity Funeral Home
• Shark Off
• Signal Theory
• Social Apex Media
• Swell Spark