Minority-Led

Fund Me, KC: ‘Black Spartans’ creator changes the tone of fantasy — where Blackness isn’t ‘the exotic other’

By Tommy Felts / January 25, 2021

Startland News is continuing its “Fund Me, KC” series to highlight area entrepreneurs’ efforts to accelerate their businesses or lend a helping hand to others. This is an opportunity for entrepreneurs — like Brandon Calloway’s campaign to fund the first book in his “Black Spartans” graphic novel series — to share crowdfunding stories and gain…

Effort to grow startup capital for Black-owned businesses: Our work in KC has just begun

By Tommy Felts / January 18, 2021

A nonprofit that’s raised more than a quarter million dollars in eight months to provide grants to Black small business owners says a diverse range of Kansas City entrepreneurs already has asked for help — and their needs go beyond the obvious. “Normally when people think of Black-owned businesses here in Kansas City, most immediately think…

Actress-entrepreneur finds sweet inspiration, resiliency in life’s unexpected ingredients

By Tommy Felts / January 18, 2021

From the stage to the studio to a sweets shop on Main Street, the creative talents of Shawna Peña-Downing have never let her down, she said, crediting her resiliency to a STEAM-focused education. “I finally got a job after being laid off in June,” Peña-Downing, multiplatform artist, teacher, and entrepreneur, said of her reality amid…

2021 Startups to Watch: TripleBlind opens historically inaccessible data without violating privacy

By Tommy Felts / January 13, 2021

Editor’s note: Startland News selected 10 Kansas City firms to spotlight for its annual Startups to Watch list. The following is one of 2021’s companies. Click here to view the full, ranked list of Startups to Watch — presented by sponsors Husch Blackwell and the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation. Because of stringent regulatory, competitive and consumer privacy restrictions,…

2021 Startups to Watch: Bar K cultivates companionship as KC’s premier ‘puppy pub’ destination

By Tommy Felts / January 13, 2021

Editor’s note: Startland News selected 10 Kansas City firms to spotlight for its annual Startups to Watch list. The following is one of 2021’s companies. Click here to view the full, ranked list of Startups to Watch — presented by sponsors Husch Blackwell and the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation. Starting as a pop-up idea that combined cocktails and…