‘HERstory’ roundtable distills women entrepreneur’s restless spirits into June 4 celebration

When women are at the helm, there’s herstory to be made. A new Kansas City-based conference hopes to showcase it. 

“The Sewing Labs proudly presents, Make’n HERstory, a celebration of women who use their creative muse to make a living and a life,” the nonprofit organization said, teasing its Saturday, June 4 conference experience. 

The event is planned for Winnetonka High School and is expected to include panel and roundtable discussions, a silent auction, a makers fair hosted by The Strawberry Swing, lunch from Thelma’s Kitchen, and a keynote address by Jenny Doan, American quilter, author, and YouTube personality. 

Additional speakers include Whitney Manney, designer and founder of WHITNEY MANNEY; Tamara Day of HGTV’s “Growing Days” and “Bargain Mansions”; Nataliya Lucia Meyer, founder of Lucia’s Sarto; and Benay Shannon, co-founder of Restless Spirits Distilling Company. 

The event provides an opportunity for each of the women to showcase their accomplishments and lessons learned, Shannon told Startland News, sharing her entrepreneurial story ahead of the event and highlighting some of her own achievements. 

Restless Spirits

“When we first started seven years ago, I was one of only six women distillers in the country — and I’m still the only one in Missouri,” Shannon said, noting she and her husband, Michael, founded Restless Spirits in 2016 when she transitioned out of a career teaching science classes at Park Hill South High School. 

“One summer, between school years, I created [our] gin recipe — just to make a gin that I could drink and that non gin drinkers would enjoy,” she said, noting her science background has largely led the way in her second act as a distiller. 

A vodka, branded Duffy’s Run, and multiple types of whiskey followed, further establishing the Restless Spirits outfit, which also boasts a North Kansas City tasting room, and multiple partnerships with major league baseball teams like the Kansas City Royals and Boston Red Sox and Kansas City’s women’s soccer team The KC Current. 

“Those are all pretty exciting things and they’re opening a lot of doors for us,” Shannon said, adding she is expected to further elaborate on her success and the intersection between creativity, the maker space, and entrepreneurship as an event panelist. 

Click here to learn more about Shannon and Restless Spirits or to place an order. 

Beyond the conference, The Sewing Labs will expand its Make’n HERStory celebration into a June 10 gala event, set to raise necessary funds that will support its mission to create a community that embraces the legacy of sewing for employment, entrepreneurship, and enrichment.

The evening will include food, drinks, music, and impact stories from students and teachers who’ve participated in The Sewing Labs programs. 

Tickets to both events are available now. Click here to learn more.

This story 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