Startups

Sean Rad, Tinder; and Sarah Hill, StoryUp Studios

Tinder founder boards advisory team as StoryUP closes oversubscribed $1M+ round

By Tommy Felts / September 12, 2019

Building a global company requires boots on the ground, Sarah Hill said as she waited to board a flight to Kansas City, hours after the close of her startup’s first million-dollar funding round. “Once the Kansas City investors hopped in, that’s when it came to be oversubscribed — we were just delighted,” said Hill, founder…

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Launch Health Accelerator 2019 cohort

Women-led Kansas City companies fuel Launch Health accelerator’s first cohort

By Tommy Felts / September 11, 2019

Healthcare needs an overhaul and four Kansas City-area companies are among those poised to disrupt the industry as part of the first Launch Health Accelerator cohort, explained Jeremy Tasset.  “Through the health accelerator, we were seeking companies with fresh ideas that give rise to improving care and lowering costs that can be readily integrated into…

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PayIt iKan

PayIt’s iKan app named a finalist in Fast Company 2019 Innovation by Design honors

By Tommy Felts / September 10, 2019

Kansas City’s PayIt isn’t just worthy of investment — its foundational technology continues to win awards alongside the likes of Nike, Microsoft and Mastercard, said John Thomson. Fast Company honored iKan — a PayIt-powered app that allows Kansas residents to pay vehicle registration renewals, renew their driver’s license (the country’s first-ever mobile driver’s license renewal service),…

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Hammerspace at Maker Faire Kansas City 2019

Custom retro arcade gaming consoles take Hammerspace workshop down memory lane

By Tommy Felts / September 10, 2019

When Hammerspace Community Workshop moved into its space off Emanuel Cleaver Boulevard in 2017, a small gaming console served as a showpiece for a room designed for creative and crafty children. Mimicking the look of a classic Nintendo GameBoy-turned-arcade game, the apparatus allowed kids — and adults alike — to play retro titles in an environment…

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Green Bee Tea Towels

From maker to CEO: Green Bee founder turned KC resources into a brand buzzing online, in stores

By Tommy Felts / September 7, 2019

When the inventory of vintage goods Rena Krouse sold online started to dwindle, her entrepreneurial roots helped her recreate history.  “I grew a huge Instagram following and they would get irritated when I would run out of certain things,” Krouse, CEO of Green Bee Tea Towels, said in explanation of how her maker’s journey began. …

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