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Editor’s note: The Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation is a financial sponsor of Startland News. While a stimulus plan being debated by Congress includes funding to stabilize existing business — it’s not enough, the Start Us Up coalition said Tuesday, echoing a call to action by one of the nation’s leading advocates for entrepreneurs. “Congress needs…
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Local recording artists continue to hold notes of perseverance as the COVID-19 pandemic settles into its second year; one Patrick Sprehe hopes will carry a different tune for Kansas City’s talent-rich music scene. “The pandemic really dampers our ability to be a sustainable business,” said Sprehe, co-founder of Center Cut Records, describing the era’s impact…
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With sales at an all-time high for Life Equals — the maker of Balance The Superfood Shot — expanding into other areas of wellness was a natural next step, Kyle FitzGerald said, emphasizing a new blend that rivals less healthy energy drinks. “We knew we were ready for product innovation,” said FitzGerald, who co-founded the…
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More than two decades after 11-year-old Christle Reed’s father died, she still vividly remembers the day of his funeral; what she was wearing; falling asleep on the way to the gravesite; how the cemetery smelled; and understanding that her life had forever changed, she shared. “We overlook kids sometimes. I think a lot of adults…
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An oversubscribed $8.2 million seed round means one thing for Kansas City-based TripleBlind: its data privacy solution is of critical importance, the rapidly scaling startup announced Monday. Its slate of new and returning investors agree. “TripleBlind will enable our joint customers in regulated industries to leverage enterprise data that today goes largely untapped due to…
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A startup veteran and architecture industry expert is now leading day-to-day operations for one of Kansas City’s Top Venture Capital-Backed firms, shaping the company’s expanded footprint under a new presidential administration as its founder shifts to a more focused role. Brett Krug, who began work today as CEO of the building analytics software platform PlanIT…
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Relief grants from a leading economic development initiative are as much about building momentum as surviving the pandemic, said Nika Cotton, emphasizing Troost as a good place to start. Cotton, owner of the Soulcentricitea tea shop at 30th Street and Troost Avenue, is using a $5,000 award from the Economic Development Corporation of Kansas City,…
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One of Kansas City startups’ biggest boosters is still in business, despite its imperiled state funding amid ongoing COVID-era budget decision-making. The Missouri Technology Corporation announced this week it’s accepting applications for two IDEA Fund co-investment programs — TechLaunch and Seed Capital — that have historic impacts on local founders. “MTC’s co-investment programs were developed…
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When Bar K’s second location opens in the fall, the popular play place for dogs will be ready if another frigid winter is in the forecast, said co-founder Leib Dodell, teasing details of a new 10,000-square-foot indoor dog park at the St. Louis site. “Dogs love being outdoors, and humans generally like being outdoors —…
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When 2020 began, Scott Reed loaded his plate with plenty of goals, hungry to achieve one in particular. “I told my wife I was going to eat more tacos,” he said, reflecting on the simplistic goal that ultimately became part of a 50-plus plate tour of Kansas City, Kansas. “Fortuitously, the KCK Taco Trail came…
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