Woman-led

Amanda McIntyre, Classy Canines

No-shame salon: How a dog grooming business helped its owner overcome life’s bites

By Tommy Felts / April 7, 2021

Dogs don’t judge, said Amanda McIntyre as she sat in the grooming shop she built from scratch with a thrifty $5,000 and the experience of a life-changing business program. “I’ve been judged my whole life,” shared McIntyre, who founded Classy Canines after overcoming a turbulent battle with addiction. “But, when it comes to dogs, they…

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Chelsey M., KC Black Owned; photo courtesy of Anna Petrow, Made in KC

The secret to KC Black Owned’s success so far? Businesses worth finding, founder says

By Tommy Felts / April 1, 2021

A business’s digital footprint is the new word of mouth, the founder of KC Black Owned said, emphasizing that getting noticed is just half the fight for many Black-owned businesses. “It is so hard to find Black-owned businesses in certain professions and industries. But there’s a demand for it,” said Chelsey M., the mind behind…

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Carlanda McKinney, Bodify; Jonaie Johnson, Interplay; Digital Sandbox KC recipients

Digital Sandbox touts two Black women-led companies with latest round of funding

By Tommy Felts / March 31, 2021

The selection of Bodify and Interplay for the latest round of Digital Sandbox KC funding doubles down on the proof-of-concept program’s commitment to bring diverse innovative ideas in the Kansas City region to life, said Jill Meyer. “We’re always thrilled to welcome entrepreneurs with smart, scalable ideas to the Sandbox,” said Meyer, senior director of…

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Olive Cooke, Kim Conyers and Sylvia Metta, Cauldron Collective

Trio of trans ‘cooking witches’ brew vegan flavor in authenticity of collective ingredients, not mere imitation

By Tommy Felts / March 30, 2021

Something wickedly delicious has made its way to Kansas City, said Olive Cooke, Kim Conyers, and Sylvia Metta. Combining their passions for cooking and community, the trio founded a pop-up business centered on plant-based comfort food.  “A couple days before our first pop-up, it became so surreal that we were actually doing this; we even…

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The City Girl Farm collaboration with WHITNEY MANNEY (WM)

How a pair of chicken footstools hatched into a yarn barnyard of sold-out flock-pleasers

By Tommy Felts / March 30, 2021

What first hatched 11 years ago as a class project at Kansas State University has taken on a colorful and quirky life of its own, Sally Linville said.  “We ask people to think a lot about their names,” Linville, founder and creative director of The City Girl Farm, said of the surprisingly important (and often…

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