Coffee for the culture: Porter House KC founders partner with Messenger to craft Black-owned coffee brand

Daniel Smith and Charon Thompson, Black Drip Coffee, The Porter House KC

Black Drip Coffee brewed from within a desire to bring coffee culture to historically disenfranchised and underserved communities, said Charon Thompson and Daniel Smith.  “It’s more than coffee,” noted Smith, who co-founded the brand, Black Drip Coffee, as well as the Porter House KC with Thompson. “We always talk about breaking down barriers and creating…

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Founded to sell: Emerging KC tech firm led by startup veterans announces $725K funding round

Scott Hansen, LeadSigma

A Kansas City startup’s initial funding round is expected to help small businesses close more deals, faster, said Scott Hansen. LeadSigma, a powerful and easy-to-use sales engagement platform, has raised a $725,000 family and friends round, Hansen, co-founder of LeadSigma, announced Friday. The round included prominent opinion leaders and agency owners in targeted SMB verticals,…

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Spot of tee: How a KC teacher scored big when Ted Lasso sported a ‘Joearthur Gatestack’ shirt

Brendan Curran, Three KC, Joearthur Gatestack

The story behind a Kansas City-designed T-shirt celebrating local barbecue culture has more meat to it than any given ’que joint’s combo platter, Brendan Curran said.  “We met playing basketball in the eighth grade,” Curran, founder of local apparel company, Three KC, said of his childhood friend, Jason Sudeikis, Overland Park-native, actor, comedian, and current…

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