Woman-led
KC’s woman-led startups selected for global summit; founders credit hustle, persistence
What started as an opportunity to meet interesting people and showcase innovative ideas to investors has turned into a once-in-a-lifetime shot at elevating five of Kansas City’s women-led startups on an international stage, said Shea Geist, beaming. “My husband made the application and I was like … ‘Whatever, it’s a million to one chance,’ so…
Rightfully Sewn fashion event designed for female empowerment fit, Carbon38 founder
Kansas City can step onto the runway as a fashion-forward city with the right education and attention, said Jennifer Lapka. Rightfully Sewn’s third annual fashion designer professional development seminar returns Saturday. With its attendance growing exponentially from year to year, the event underscores the development of Kansas City’s fashion scene, said Lapka, the founder of…
Tired of waiting at the barber shop? An AI-infused platform grown at UMKC could trim time
Born in the barber’s chair, Kansas City-based ScheduleMe could take more than a little off the top for service-based retailers. The startup plans to use artificial intelligence to groom the haphazard scheduling process entirely, its co-founders said. “We discovered that [our barbershop] was having issues with scheduling. What we wanted to do was try to…
AudreySpirit fashions clothing to help chronically ill child patients feel like themselves again
AudreySpirit is designed to bring dignity to chronically sick children, said Donna Yadrich, detailing a specially created clothing line that doesn’t sacrifice practicality. “When my daughter Audrey was in the [Intensive Care Unit] the last time, I was looking at her arms and she just had so many wires and everything coming out of her…
UMKC Enactus team kicks open front door to Kansas City innovation scene with final four win
As the number of teams left standing in the Enactus U.S. nationals started to dwindle, members of the competitive entrepreneurial development program’s team at the University of Missouri-Kansas City rode a pulsating wave of excitement and emotion, recalled Ali Brandolino. “I started crying,” added Brandolino, UMKC Enactus vice president of operations. “It was the most…
