Investors

Laura McCoolidge, Sofia Fund

Minneapolis angel investment firm expanding to KC, names McCoolidge managing partner

By Tommy Felts / July 9, 2019

A former leader of the Mid-America Angels fund could be the secret to establishing Minneapolis-based Sofia Fund as a new investment resource for women-led companies within Kansas City, said Cathy Connett. “The Midwest continues to be a hub of startup activity,’ said Connett, Sofia Fund CEO. “Extending our footprint to Kansas City gives us access…

Read More >
Kelly Sievers, Women’s Capital Connection

Q&A: Startup life isn’t all risk-taking and sexy, big-name investors, Kelly Sievers says

By Tommy Felts / July 2, 2019

Investing doesn’t just hinge a dollar amount, said Kelly Sievers. “It’s also about finding the right kind of funding for your business,” the Women’s Capital Connection managing director told 26 small business owners at a recent Kansas City SCORE mentoring event.  Sievers, an entrepreneurial advisor for the Women’s Business Center, has owned, operated and sold…

Read More >
Ron LeMay, Main Street Data, Open Air Equity Partners

Startup, investor, corporate worlds collide; Ron LeMay’s message for KC: Sit down and talk

By Tommy Felts / June 7, 2019

Ron LeMay wasn’t willing to watch entrepreneurs flee Kansas City to build their game-changing companies on the coasts, he recalled. “That’s a prescription for disaster over time,” LeMay, CEO of Main Street Data and managing director of Open Air Equity Partners, said of the way he viewed entrepreneurial progress in the City of Fountains as…

Read More >
TomboyX Women’s Capital Connection

$18M buyout of TomboyX shares shows investing in women pays off, says Women’s Capital Connection

By Tommy Felts / May 16, 2019

Women are winning in Kansas City, said Kelly Sievers as 24 members of Women’s Capital Connection receive their return from an $18-million buyout of their shares in a Seattle woman’s startup. “They’re getting a great infusion of capital to grow even more and we also still have money in the company because we invested a…

Read More >

Zego exit, investment wins reflect critical need for startups to look outside KC, co-founder says

By Tommy Felts / May 10, 2019

Homegrown is great, Adam Blake said, but at some point scaling companies must explore the world of resources and dollars available outside the metro. “Kansas City has a lot to offer — plenty of talent, great place to live and quality of life, helpful mentors, etc. — but I would say it’s a requirement for startups…

Read More >