News

Smokeware ceramicist wins Chamber’s new arts award: A breath of fresh air for once-waylaid artist

By Tommy Felts / June 14, 2024

Editor’s note: The Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce is a non-financial partner of Startland News, which serves as the media partner for the Small Business Superstars program. Riley Brain strikes a delicate balance between artist and entrepreneur, the founder said Thursday after being named the KC Chamber’s first winner of the Luminary Art and…

KC engineering firm with global reach earns Chamber equity award for its community-focused blueprint

By Tommy Felts / June 14, 2024

Editor’s note: The Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce is a non-financial partner of Startland News, which serves as the media partner for the Small Business Superstars program. Equity is infused in everything Taliaferro & Browne engineers, said Leonard Graham, accepting the KC Chamber’s Small Business Equity Award alongside co-owner Hagos Andebrhan.  One of Kansas…

Best in show: Bar K vies for USA Today’s dog bar prize; here’s how a shared love of dogs is pushing expansion

By Tommy Felts / June 13, 2024

The human-dog bond — and a desire to embrace it at places like Bar K’s innovative bar, restaurant, and dog park experience — is stronger than today’s often partisan and divisive climate, said David Hensley. “It doesn’t matter your political affiliations … where you’re from, your socioeconomic status,” he said. “Everybody loves dogs, and that…

Firm with deep KC ties wins Small Business of the Year thanks to tenacity, hyperlocal focus

By Tommy Felts / June 13, 2024

Editor’s note: The Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce is a non-financial partner of Startland News, which serves as the media partner for the Small Business Superstars program. A decades-long commitment to Kansas City clients — and the belief that rising tides lift all ships — helped propel Walz Tetrick Advertising to the award stage…

How this genre-hopping KC musician is fighting back against digitized entertainment

By Tommy Felts / June 13, 2024

A former college football star, Keelon Vann often found himself “running on fumes” as he chased his passion on the field — and on key. “I’d be up playing guitar until 3 a.m., which is not a joke, and somehow make it to 5:30 a.m. workouts the next day,” said Vann, a quarterback at Piper High…