Startups

Cart Kings

Safe and sanitized: Cart Kings corral COVID threat with three dads’ protective solution

By Tommy Felts / December 14, 2020

Three Kansas City dads’ community-first mindsets pushed the trio to develop a “first-of-its-kind” technique for making grocery and retail stores across the metro safer amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Their mission: disinfect shopping carts and other well-used items via a sanitization trailer — bypassing the arduous, fallible and potentially dangerous process of cleaning by hand, said…

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Damika Clay

How Stick Figure Bully’s simple lines and shapes rewrite one woman’s childhood trauma as a cautionary tale

By Tommy Felts / December 10, 2020

Editor’s note: This article is underwritten by Plexpod — a progressive coworking platform offering next generation workspace for entrepreneurs, startups, and growth-stage companies of all sizes — but was independently produced by Startland News. A creative spirit, Damika Clay recalled a white sweatshirt on which she loved to write and draw designs. The same item she proudly…

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Restaurant, Pub and Games (RPG), Lawrence

Inspired by life-or-death resiliency, RPG turns to take-home game rentals, crowdsourced investors

By Tommy Felts / December 10, 2020

Editor’s note: This article is underwritten by Plexpod — a progressive coworking platform offering next generation workspace for entrepreneurs, startups, and growth-stage companies of all sizes — but was independently produced by Startland News. Stories from Nate Morsches’ grandfather sounded like plot lines in an Indiana Jones film, the Lawrence entrepreneur recalled; only the tales he heard…

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Rob Wilson and Michael Wilson, A-10

Budding family business: Serial cannabis entrepreneur pioneers microwave drying tech with his father

By Tommy Felts / December 8, 2020

In Michael Wilson’s childhood, he recalled, the founder of multiple cannabis-related startups got into fights at school — then suspended — resulting in numerous car rides with his father as the elder Wilson ventured on sales trips. “From age 7 or 8, I had an education on how to do business, interact with people and…

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Kenzen team, pre-COVID-19 pandemic

Kenzen finds capital in Kansas City as market for startup’s speciality wearables heats up

By Tommy Felts / December 7, 2020

Editor’s note: This article is underwritten by Plexpod — a progressive coworking platform offering next generation workspace for entrepreneurs, startups, and growth-stage companies of all sizes — but was independently produced by Startland News. Take a closer look, Heidi Lehmann urged, detailing her once-outsider’s view of Kansas City and ways it revealed a robust and evolving pipeline…

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