Photos: Rebooted Startup Crawl reconnects entrepreneurs with a curious Kansas City
June 14, 2023 | Startland News Staff
Kansas City’s Power & Light District was crawling with curiosity Friday as a sellout crowd made its rounds, participating in the recently revived Startup Crawl event and exploring a new side of the city they call home.
Startup Crawl attendees and participants crowd together at Spark Coworking during the 2023 Startup Crawl in downtown Kansas City; photo by Tommy Felts, Startland News
“We saw a mix of familiar and unfamiliar faces,” said Austin Barnes, executive editor of Startland News and lead organizer of Startup Crawl, noting it was the newcomers who made the return of Startup Crawl (after a four-year hiatus) a success.
“More than 42 percent of our guests were exposed to the startup, entrepreneurial and innovation community for the first time during the event — that’s a huge win as we work to further amplify innovation in KC.”
An estimated 815 guests took part in the Husch Blackwell-sponsored crawl, which spanned five venues in the Power & Light District.
Sixty-three startups, small businesses, and community organizations participated in the event.
Click here to read more about the return of Startup Crawl.
RELATED: Kansas City entrepreneurs at Startup Crawl express optimism about hiring, local support
“We couldn’t have asked for better weather, a better crowd, or more support,” Barnes said, adding kudos to event sponsors at Husch Blackwell, Block Advisors by H&R Block, Swell Spark, Spark Coworking Kansas City, Uncommongood, Saile, Kansas City Power & Light District, PNC Plaza, Kansas City BizCare, Social Apex Media, and Crux.
Check out a brief photo gallery from the event below, then keep reading.
“Our sponsors were critical in reviving this effort,” he noted. “These companies stepped up and believed us when we said our community remained hungry for this type of connectivity after the pandemic. With little hesitation they put generous support behind this event and ensured it could return bigger than ever.”
Such support went even deeper than financial sponsorship, Barnes added.
“The way our partners at each of these companies activated their teams for this event is unlike anything we’ve seen in nearly a decade of operation at Startland News,” he continued, explaining teams from the largely corporate slate of sponsors came out in full force to participate in the event in ways that ranged from planning and organizing to running booths and volunteering at crawl venues.
“That level of involvement and excitement is why Kansas City is unlike any other city around. They came ready and willing to engage with participating companies and curious citizens alike”
In addition to startup and small business exhibitors, local food from the likes of Happy Tummy and Devoured, and flowing drinks, guests were treated to a concert lineup that included three emerging artists and bands.
Keep scrolling for even more photos from Startup Crawl.
2023 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
High-tech dog kennels to affordable housing: Mayor announces city’s new startup partners
Kansas City needs startups’ brightest minds working on the ever-evolving city’s behalf, said Mayor Sly James. Six valuable new startup partners — ranging from companies addressing housing and zoning issues to firms focused on high-tech dog houses and the management of restaurants’ grease — have accepted the call, the city announced Friday. “The Innovation Partnership…
Sickweather CEO bringing Cold Cough Flu conference to KC
It might be warm and sunny this summer, but a storm is brewing, said Graham Dodge. The Sickweather founder’s Cold Cough Flu conference set for October in Kansas City could help health officials detect what’s to come. Inspired by a similar event organized by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Oct. 15 event…
Teens’ marketing startup TRNDSTTRS aims to amplify its own business influence
Staying young and hungry is everything, said the teenage entrepreneurs at TRNDSTTRS Media. With a team of ten 18- to 19-year-old go-getters, the tech-based firm focuses on providing affordable, in-depth marketing service to small and mid-sized companies. They use their age as an advantage rather than seeing it as an obstacle, said Jake Bjorseth, founder…
Former high school rivals from MADE, Local Legends ‘Play It Forward’ in bid to revive South KC
Organizers of the Aug. 12 Play It Forward charity basketball game traded playful taunts as they approached the doors of the former Hickman Mills High School gymnasium. “They painted over your cougar,” said AbdulRasheed Yahaya, a Ruskin High School graduate, referencing the giant eagle logo affixed to the former Hickman facility that now is part…