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Recent Articles by Janssen Coffee

Wave Money: H&R Block deposits its $405M startup investment into small business banking

June 11, 2020

A year to the day after its acquisition by Kansas City tax giant H&R Block, Wave Financial is churning up change in the sea of small business banking.  The Toronto,Canada-based fintech company announced Thursday the launch of Wave Money — a first-of-its-kind small business banking solution that eliminates banking fees, has built-in bookkeeping, and gives business…

Employer survey: KC digital media talent weak on tech, soft skills — even with a college degree

June 10, 2020

Area colleges and universities are falling short in preparing graduates for careers in digital media, a new study suggests. Cross-industry collaborations could help fill in the missing pixels.  “The survey really highlights some gaps that are preventing the industry from moving forward,” explained Ron Green, executive director of digiSTORY KC — a Kansas City-based non-profit…

Business, civic leader: Chains of slavery were built for profit (then and now) — together we must dismantle them

June 9, 2020

Editor’s note: The opinions expressed in this commentary are the author’s alone. Jeff Simon is managing partner of Husch Blackwell’s Kansas City office. Simon is currently on the board of STARTLAND, the parent organization of Startland News, and previously served as president of the Kansas City Board of Police Commissioners, chair of the Kansas City…

Milkman of CBD: How closing KC Hemp Co’s storefront helped deliver a 600-percent sales increase 

June 8, 2020

A new strain of strategy has KC Hemp Co. going all in on eCommerce, its owners said, announcing the company has permanently closed its downtown Overland Park retail space — transitioning to online sales and limited same-day delivery.  “We’ve been able to cut over 80 percent of our overhead,” explained Kyle Steppe, who owns KC…

Donations drop as KC reopens — but need for help outlasts COVID’s peak, says Merry Outlaw

June 8, 2020

Merry Outlaw’s quick pivot to a COVID-19 Mutual Aid app raised $11,000 in a little over a month — but donations slowed as people turned their eyes back to “normal life,” said Lindsay Smith.  “Our first month we hit $10,000 — and you don’t want to get discouraged about this — but in the beginning,…

Neelima Parasker planned for snow days — COVID came instead; How SnapIT is weathering the pandemic in a new space

June 5, 2020

More than 20,000 square feet of silence greeted Neelima Parasker as she returned to work this week after Stay at Home orders lifted.  “Monday we opened up, but really, to very few people,” Parasker, CEO of SnapIT Solutions, said of the startup’s reentry to the traditional workforce — this time, inside a new office space…

Startup veteran pilots Air Traffic Awareness, wants ‘Silicon Valley of Aviation’ to truly take flight

June 5, 2020

A climbing Kansas City startup could save lives by bridging technology gaps in air travel, said Kashif Hasnie.  “Collisions are among the top causes of aircraft accidents in the world,” explained Hasnie, CEO of Air Traffic Awareness.  First launched as a class project at the University of Missouri-Kansas City, Air Traffic Awareness has developed patent-pending,…

Young agency bottles digital savvy for startup where co-founder brewed booch

June 4, 2020

From booch bottler to boss, Zack Schneller isn’t forgetting his Tea-Biotics roots as he embarks on his own startup journey — which has him helping his former employer with an eCommerce emergence and social media scale up.  “We did a free trial for them, which happened to fall on National Kombucha Day,” Schneller, co-founder of Oak…

Kauffman leader at pitch contest: Listen to young people’s ideas, vision for the future

June 4, 2020

Editor’s note: The following is a student-written article written by one of 357 interns in CommunityAmerica Credit Union’s recent virtual innovation internship program. Lucia Umbreit is an incoming junior at Liberty High School. CommunityAmerica is a financial partner of STARTLAND, the parent organization of Startland News. Student teams made three-minute pitches to five Kansas City…

‘No words for that moment’ when winning pitch announced, says student competitor

June 4, 2020

Editor’s note: The following is a student-written article written by one of 357 interns in CommunityAmerica Credit Union’s recent virtual innovation internship program. Sydney Newton is an incoming junior at Shawnee Mission East High School. CommunityAmerica is a financial partner of STARTLAND, the parent organization of Startland News. As Chloe Chaffin pitched her team’s idea…