Startups

Sandy Kemper, C2FO

C2FO’s $200M challenge: Prove the fintech startup is worthy of KC’s biggest investments

A record-busting $200 million investment announced Wednesday easily tops C2FO’s previous headline-grabbing funding rounds, but now the Kansas City fintech mega startup must live up to the hype, said Sandy Kemper. “Investments are always forward-looking,” said Kemper, founder and CEO of C2FO. “Our job is to make sure that we’re living up to our ability…

Sandy Kemper, C2FO

BREAKING: C2FO closes $200M investment led by backer of WeWork, Uber, Slack

Startup giant C2FO continues its climb to the top, having secured a new $200 million investment — and doubling the amount of its once-record funding raise in fewer than two years.  “We are very fortunate to have a team who, for years, has delivered industry-leading unit economics, extraordinary customer satisfaction, and strong global growth,” Sandy…

Anurag Patel, Helix Health

As healthcare pivots to value based service, Helix Health uses data analytics to reduce costs

Prevention is cheaper than cure — a sentiment forming the foundation of Helix Health, said Anurag Patel. “The business of healthcare today is that if you’re sick, then you’re a customer of healthcare. If you’re healthy, then you’re not,” Patel said, describing a need for creating a business model that helps people stay healthy.  Helix Health…

Sarah Walsh, Tigersheep Friends

Watch: Tigersheep Friends creators build a ferociously off-beat, under-the-radar KC brand

From three-eyed leopards to strawberry cream giraffes, the creative minds behind Tigersheep Friends love illustrating off-beat versions of animals to keep their artistic passions alive, said Sarah Walsh.  When the husband-and-wife duo started the company in 2011, they were looking for an alternate creative outlet, said Sarah Walsh, co-founder of the online product line. Click…

Alexandru Otrezov, PayIt

PayIt hires former Uber disruptive marketing leader as KC govtech startup’s first CMO

Kansas City-based govtech startup PayIt is downloading executive expertise from the West Coast, John Thomson said Tuesday, announcing PayIt’s first chief marketing officer — a former leader at Uber. Based in San Francisco, Alexandru Otrezov will lead PayIt’s marketing organization and continue to accelerate the company’s brand and growth efforts, said Thomson, co-founder and CEO…