Profiles

Mike Plunkett and John Thomson, PayIt

Kansas City’s PayIt opens new Canadian HQ, taking its GovTech solution global

By Tommy Felts / September 8, 2020

One of Kansas City’s top scaling tech companies opened its new headquarters in Canada, John Thomson announced Tuesday, marking a significant step in PayIt’s growth and expansion into new markets. “We are absolutely thrilled to be opening our Canadian headquarters here in Toronto. This city is already home to some immense tech talent and we…

Read More >
Photo by Tiffany Tertipes Curbside Notary

Voting by mail? Curbside Notary bringing ballot service to coffee shops, restaurants

By Tommy Felts / September 8, 2020

Everyone deserves the right to vote safely, said Danielle Lehman, steering her innovative mind toward Curbside Notary — an effort to connect Missouri mail-in voters with notaries at easy-to-access locations like coffee shops and restaurants. “I started thinking about, ‘Where are people visiting every day?’ A lot of people go get their coffee in the…

Read More >
Strang Hall Edison District

‘Perfect weather’ helping Strang Hall stay open today, but success requires a longer view, says Tim Barton

By Tommy Felts / September 3, 2020

Mild summer temperatures have fed Strang Hall’s bottom line, said Tim Barton, even as a persistent pandemic keeps the downtown Overland Park food hall hungry for its full potential. “Having the outdoor space and the roll-up garage door bar area has been very good for us,” said Tim Barton, the serial entrepreneur and mind behind…

Read More >
Spark Kansas City, murals by JT Daniels

JT Daniels’ murals infuse sparks of Kansas City into new downtown collaborative workspace

By Tommy Felts / September 2, 2020

A sprawling mural inside Spark Kansas City offers the new collaborative workspace and its members more than just a few pops of color, said JT Daniels. “The subjects are all important figures specific to KC’s history, both past and present,” said Daniels, a Kansas City-based illustrator and muralist tasked with helping bring Spark KC’s common…

Read More >
Roy Scott, Healthy Hip Hop; Ina Montgomery, Urban TEC; Tammy Buckner, WeCode KC; and Edgar Palacios, Latinx Education Collaborative

LEANLAB awards $50K in seed grants to 19 Black and Latinx innovators in education

By Tommy Felts / August 28, 2020

Entrepreneurs should reflect the communities they serve, said Katie Boody — a charge even more critical when innovative work touches Kansas City’s diverse public school systems, she added. “I know firsthand how challenging launching a startup can be for anyone, and especially for founders of color,” said Boody, co-founder and CEO of LEANLAB Education, announcing the…

Read More >