Profiles

Steve Holle, KC Bier Co.

KC Bier Co. brewing regional expansion one tap handle at a time, founder says

By Tommy Felts / October 27, 2018

Rapid growth in the craft brewing market has tapped out, said Steve Holle, founder of KC Bier Co. A solid understanding of the reasons behind such an overdraught industry has so-far saved the Kansas City-based, German-style brewing company from being caught in the same weeds as recently closed Manhattan-brewed competitor, Tallgrass Brewing Co., Holle said.…

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SafeDefend

Former school principal’s SafeDefend active shooter system installed at Jewish Community Center, target of 2014 Overland Park shootings

By Tommy Felts / October 27, 2018

Every student, teacher and staff member deserves the greatest opportunity to get home from school safely, said Jeff Green, founder of SafeDefend. Green’s security solution — an active shooter response system that sends alerts throughout a school community, as well as detailed information to law enforcement, within seconds of an incident — recently was installed…

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LaunchKC winner Erkios: Hacking attacks will come from inside — Fortifi intellectual property

By Tommy Felts / October 24, 2018

Tinkering with old technology defined childhood for Philip Van Der Straeten, COO of Kansas City tech startup Erkios Systems. Such adventures could one day provide a nationwide payoff for his company, he said. “Our organization was built by tinkerers and critical thinkers attempting to break things down and get a better grasp of what they…

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Rebecca Dove, Pennez, ProjectUK

KCultivator Q&A: Pennez’s Rebecca Dove on pushing past a world that says ‘No’

By Tommy Felts / October 22, 2018

Editor’s note: KCultivators is a lighthearted profile series to highlight people who are meaningfully enriching Kansas City’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. The KCultivator Series is sponsored by WeWork Corrigan Station, a modern twist on Kansas City office space. Pennez is working to combat childhood illiteracy by bringing its technology to after-school programming, said founder Rebecca Dove. The…

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Sellozo

KC-based Sellozo opens upgraded analytics platform to Amazon sellers

By Tommy Felts / October 22, 2018

Upping the stakes, true profit tracking platform Sellozo plans to roll out a new level of access for its users selling on retail giant Amazon, said Jessica McCune. “It’s definitely cool to have the capability to work with more than just the North American marketplace,” McCune, the Kansas City-grown company’s marketing specialist, said of the…

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