Startups

Kemet Coleman and Lauren Euston, MOSS Salon Studios

First couple of KC Dapper Rap launching first-of-its-kind coworking space for city’s urban core

By Tommy Felts / April 16, 2019

A new self-style space in Midtown is expected to offer hair, beauty and wellness entrepreneurs an opportunity to cowork under one roof without the burden of securing financing or paying for utilities, said Lauren Euston. “If you are a busy stylist or busy wellness professional and you are working hard to reach the next level…

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Chef Shanita McAffee-Bryant, The Prospect

The Prospect: ‘Cutthroat Kitchen’ winner on the move with chef-inspired workforce training

By Tommy Felts / April 16, 2019

Everyday consumers can elevate Kansas City through the simple of act of eating a meal, said Chef Shanita McAfee-Bryant. Her in-the-works non-profit urban eatery concept — The Prospect — caters to a marketplace hungry for culinary-oriented workforce development training: students looking for a window into entrepreneurship through cooking, said Bryant, 2014 winner of Food Network’s…

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BacklotCars parks another $25 million in Series B round led by NY-based investor

By Tommy Felts / April 15, 2019

KC-fueled BacklotCars will further its mission to disrupt the wholesale automotive space, thanks to the close of a $25 million Series B funding round, the company announced Monday. Led by New York-based growth equity firm, Stripes, the round brings BacklotCars — which seeks to ease pain points for automotive wholesalers — to $38 million in…

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ModRN Health aims to break down primary care with $35-a-month membership model

By Tommy Felts / April 15, 2019

ModRN Health is injecting life into a decaying healthcare system through holistic approaches, said CaRessa Hutchinson. “[Patients practically need] a medical degree to be able to navigate the healthcare system. It’s ridiculous,” said Hutchinson, co-founder of the Overland Park-based healthcare platform dedicated to ‘filling in the gaps” for patients. “People are just so overwhelmed and…

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Nipsey Hussle Kansas City

‘Heartbreaking but empowering’: Nipsey Hussle’s life, death inspire entrepreneurs to action

By Tommy Felts / April 11, 2019

The Marathon will continue, Wesley Hamilton said, echoing tens of thousands of mourners now pledging to keep alive the transcendent entrepreneurial spirit of rapper-turned-community leader Nipsey Hussle. Hamilton, founder and executive director of the KC-based nonprofit The Disabled But Not Really Foundation, was among a dozen or more Kansas City entrepreneurs in Los Angeles Thursday…

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