Startups

TomboyX Women’s Capital Connection

$18M buyout of TomboyX shares shows investing in women pays off, says Women’s Capital Connection

By Tommy Felts / May 16, 2019

Women are winning in Kansas City, said Kelly Sievers as 24 members of Women’s Capital Connection receive their return from an $18-million buyout of their shares in a Seattle woman’s startup. “They’re getting a great infusion of capital to grow even more and we also still have money in the company because we invested a…

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Photo courtesy of Bungii

Bungii launches on-demand hauling in Chicago; quirks of new markets steering KC startup’s agility

By Tommy Felts / May 16, 2019

Bungii is quickly seeing results in the third-largest U.S. city, as the sharing economy startup leaves its tire prints on yet another market. “It’s early, but we are seeing very positive KPIs [key performance indicators] from the Chicago launch. It’s our fastest-growing record to date,” said Ben Jackson, co-founder of Bungii, which was founded in…

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Image courtesy of ShotTracker Mountain West

ShotTracker partners with entire NCAA conference, taking shot at potential in-game analytics

By Tommy Felts / May 15, 2019

The game is all about proliferating ShotTracker’s technology, said Davyeon Ross, announcing a new partnership with the Mountain West conference to spread the Kansas-born stats-and-analytics tech further across collegiate basketball. Ross’ goal: nothing short of overhauling sports. “The Mountain West continues to stand out for being a pioneer in adopting the latest cutting-edge technologies,” the…

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Downtown Des Moines, photo by Drew Dau

No, Dwolla’s Monetery conference isn’t just about money; it’s an inclusive tech challenge

By Tommy Felts / May 14, 2019

Though Monetery aims to be a mix of seminars, networking and investing opportunities, the secret to maintaining the Midwest tech conference’s value-positive vibe is its intimacy, said Steph Atkin. “We want to make sure that there is an opportunity for all our startups, all our venture capitalists, and our speakers, to meet and connect,” continued…

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James “Sug Easy” Singleton, Break Free KC

Break Free KC drops beat on cultural stereotypes, aims to rebrand hip hop

By Tommy Felts / May 14, 2019

Hip hop culture in Kansas City is misunderstood, James “Sug Easy” Singleton said, explaining his mission to help local artists break free of stereotypes and live their passion with authenticity. “When I have a 88-year-old lady at my camp seeing her grandson — who came in with a negative notion of what hip hop was going…

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