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Eric Goeken, CTO, and Laura Steward, founder and CEO, VideoFizz

Startup’s tech hits Hallmark shelves with video greeting cards; partnership ‘worth the wait’

By Tommy Felts / November 4, 2021

Kansas City creative giant Hallmark’s newly announced line of video greeting cards is more than a one-of-a-kind product innovation — it’s the outcome of an extended startup partnership that was years in the making, Laura Steward said. “In 2015, we won a Launch KC grant,” recalled Steward, founder and CEO of Kearney, Missouri-based VideoFizz, describing the…

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Mike Hastings and Armando Vasquez, Anchor Island Coffee

Why this KC couple will be lifting a celebratory ‘Dirty Sunrise’ when GEWKC drops anchor

By Tommy Felts / November 3, 2021

The married duo behind Anchor Island Coffee already knew they’d have to defy expectations for their tropical-themed breakfast spot to succeed on Troost. And then came COVID. “Just two weeks after we opened in March 2020, we closed,” said Mike Hastings, who owns the shop with husband Armando Vasquez. “By May, we were able to…

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Gavin Dell with the Mystery Machine from "Scooby Doo!"

New in KC: Hollywood veteran designs animation academy to make young artists more hirable

By Tommy Felts / November 2, 2021

Editor’s note: New in KC is an ongoing profile series that highlights newly relocated members of the Kansas City startup community, their reasons for a change of scenery, and what they’ve found so far in KC. This series is sponsored by C2FO, a Leawood-based, global financial services company. Click here to read more New in KC profiles. A touch of Hollywood…

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Get Started Omaha, Husch Blackwell

Husch Blackwell opens pitch contest for early-stage startups, welcoming KC to apply

By Tommy Felts / November 2, 2021

Editor’s note: Husch Blackwell is a financial supporter of Startland News. This report was produced independently for Startland News’ nonprofit newsroom. Startups in Kansas City and nationwide have the opportunity to compete for $25,000 in cash plus pro bono services in an upcoming pitch contest organized by a leading law firm. Get Started Omaha has…

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Jonelle Jones, co-owner of Kind Food; photo by Jennifer Wetzel

Fill ’em with kindness: Why one plant-based eatery is moving it’s do-good mission to KCK

By Tommy Felts / October 29, 2021

With every order up at Kind Food’s Iron District-forged counter, Kansas City becomes a little more compassionate — or at least compassion-curious, Jonelle Jones said, dishing on the do-good mission and plans for growth that will soon take the North Kansas City-based restaurant into the heart of Kansas City, Kansas.  “Eat more plants and be good…

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Bitcoin Day coming to KC: Experts share how startups can benefit from cryptocurrency 

By Tommy Felts / October 29, 2021

The realm of innovation and growth is extensive when it comes to how entrepreneurs can integrate cryptocurrency into their business models, said Don Stuart.  “Specific to Kansas City, we’ve seen more and more interest here in the past few months with different companies getting set up to accept Bitcoin for payments — just because they…

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Brett Malinowski, Magic Mushroom Clubhouse

How an Overland Park blockchain creator grew $1.4M in 17 minutes with ‘Magic Mushrooms’

By Tommy Felts / October 29, 2021

More than 3,300 individuals entered the biotic metaverse, becoming members of the exclusive Magic Mushroom Clubhouse. “I dropped everything for this project, and then we ended up selling out in 17 minutes,” said Brett Malinowski, the creator of the non-fungible token (NFT) profile picture project, Magic Mushroom Clubhouse.  “It’s this new wave of NFTs where…

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Lightwell building overlooking the outdoor seating of Jason's Deli, incoming home of Strang Chef Collective at Lightwell

More downtown eats: Chef-driven food hall joining Made in KC on Lightwell’s ground floor

By Tommy Felts / October 27, 2021

Nearly two years after details of a chef collective at Lightwell were first teased, developers today announced the popular urban Johnson County food experience Strang Hall will indeed open a second location in downtown Kansas City. “Like the original Strang Hall in downtown Overland Park, the concept will be a casual, modern space designed for…

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Sharmil Desai, Menufy

Menufy sale scales HungerRush to more than 500 workers, 20,000 restaurants, KC co-founder says

By Tommy Felts / October 27, 2021

Growth isn’t new to the menu for Menufy’s Leawood based team, said Sharmil Desai, noting the online platform for restaurants had grown to 140 employees before its freshly announced acquisition by HungerRush. “I can’t think of any point when Menufy has not been adding and expanding,” Desai, co-founder and CEO of Menufy, told Startland News.…

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The Innovator Awards recognize innovativeness and marketability of project ideas in Project Lead The Way's biomedical science and engineering capstone courses. (File photo by Charles Maples)

How intersecting K-12 student competitions build design thinking, inventiveness and an entrepreneurial mindset

By Tommy Felts / October 26, 2021

Editor’s note: The opinions expressed in this commentary are the author’s alone. Callen Fairchild Zind is communications manager for the KC STEM Alliance. How do you prepare for a career when the world is changing at such a rapid pace that no one can quite envision what jobs of the future will look like? In Kansas…

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