Letter from the editor: Help us Give A Start to KC innovators
October 6, 2020 | Tommy Felts
Editor’s note: The following kicks off Startland News’ Give A Start — an eight-week donor campaign seeking reader support for the nonprofit newsroom. Click here to donate.
It’s a big day. Startland News is launching its first-ever donor campaign — asking our readers to join in financially supporting a nonprofit newsroom that’s helped elevate Kansas City entrepreneurs for more than five years.
Tommy Felts, Startland News
We’re calling it Give A Start.
The eight-week campaign runs today — National News Engagement Day — through Giving Tuesday on Dec. 1.
Independent newsrooms are more important than ever. Startland News now is a team of three full-time journalists, posting about 40 articles a month — nearly half of them about underserved or underrepresented entrepreneurs.
We’re shining a spotlight on Kansas City innovation with solutions-based, human-focused storytelling — as well as showcasing resiliency in a pandemic-struck world.
Click here to donate to keep Startland News scaling its storytelling.
Kansas City starts companies.
We start covering them.
Startland News is proud to be a discovery platform for a broad range of startups, disruptors, creatives, makers and risk-takers. Our readers value being among the first to learn about the bold new ideas fueling Kansas City businesses.
For the entrepreneurs and innovators themselves, an article in Startland News often helps lay the media groundwork for credibility and exposure to an audience of peers and potential customers and investors. We’re frequently the first step in getting covered by a national publication, gaining industry attention or landing a game-changing investment.
It’s about giving a start — but also context.
We must explore critically the challenges and even failures that go hand-in-hand with creativity and innovation. Learning from those setbacks — and inspiring others to keep pushing forward or make their own start — is key to strengthening Kansas City for generations to come.
In short: Your support will help us dig deeper.
Give what you can. Give A Start.
A monthly or one-time gift to Startland News (in whatever amount feels right) can help us keep our momentum moving alongside the people we cover — from solopreneurs and artists to startup founders with hundreds of workers — amplifying the stories of Kansas City innovation.
Today is Tuesday. Just another day, but for many entrepreneurs, it’s the start of a journey they’re counting on Startland News to share.
Give A Start and be part of their story.
— Tommy Felts,
editor, Startland News
2020 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
Boulevard launches BBQ beer to help new museum tell Kansas City’s smoky story
It’s a beer that could only happen in Kansas City, said Greg Garrity, teasing Boulevard Brewing Co.’s just-announced bourbon barrel-aged Belgian-style quad — a brew infused with smoked malt and a blend of bold, barbecue-inspired ingredients. Crafted in collaboration with the recently opened Museum of BBQ at Crown Center, the MO’ BBQ release is the…
Olathe opening: Popular chicken chain flies deeper into JoCo; its first franchisee isn’t just winging it
Joe Finch got his start in the food industry bussing tables. This weekend, he’ll open his own restaurant in Olathe — capitalizing on the popularity of spinout success WingStand by opening the brand’s first franchise location. WingStand Olathe is set to debut Saturday at 119 South Mur-Len Road, offering an order of free wings to…
Lawmakers cut MTC’s funding to zero: Venture fund will move forward, leader says, but future grantmaking in jeopardy
Editor’s note: The following commentary was originally released May 14 by Jack Scatizzi, executive director and CEO of Missouri Technology Corporation, as an update on the 2026 funding outlook for MTC, a public-private partnership created by the Missouri General Assembly to promote entrepreneurship. The perspectives expressed in this commentary are the author’s alone. As many…
Grab your Zhoug sauce: Lawrence-built eatery launching brand across KC (starting with this famous food spot)
Shuttered for three years, the former d’Bronx pizzeria space — the now-defunct hometown brand’s original location along 39th Street’s famed “Restaurant Row” — is reopening Wednesday with a fresh look and flavors from the other side of the globe (via a Kansas college town). Zhoug Mediterranean is expected to debut its fare at 3904 Bell…