Six Kansas City coworking studios to inspire you

Kansas City features an array of coworking spaces aimed at fostering collaboration and creativity. Below are a few of the spaces that caught our eye. Twelve coworking studios in the Kansas City area recently banded together to collectively raise their profiles to attract more businesses, entrepreneurs and individuals with the KC Coworking Alliance. The studios hope to bring awareness to their…

KC companies tap K-State LAB program

Three Kansas City area startups are honing their approaches with an array of resources at a business development program at Kansas State University. Acre Designs (Kansas City, Kan.) and AEGLE Palette (Shawnee) and Alvoru Clothing (Shawnee) were selected to participate in KSU’s Launch a Business program, which is designed to cultivate promising ventures in Kansas…

KC joins White House in “Startup in a Day” effort

Kansas City has joined a national effort to streamline the process of registering and licensing a new business for entrepreneurs. The City of Fountains has pledged to the White House and Small Business Administration to make launching a business an easier process via the “Startup in a Day” initiative. “Navigating the maze of licensing and…

KC entrepreneurs talk funding, advice over breakfast

It can be tough for young, growing companies to find funding in Kansas City, but it’s not impossible. That was one of the takeaways from Thinking Bigger Business’ BIG Breakfast on June 11 at the Kauffman Foundation. The quarterly breakfast features stories and insights from four local entrepreneurs, many of whom have appeared in recent…

RECAP: 1 Million Cups features MotaVera and YouSpin

Kansas City’s 1 Million Cups event was on display this week with a full room and a camera crew on hand, recording content for an upcoming website update. The two featured startups  — MotaVera and YouSpin — rose to the challenge of the added pressure, and introduced attendees to their respective startups. First to present…

KC luxury watch startup, Niall lands in Tivol stores

Luxury timepiece-maker Niall will soon be selling its watches with one of Kansas City’s most prestigious jewelers. The Kansas City-based watchmaker will start selling its timepieces at two Kansas City Tivol stores on June 18, offering it both exposure and validation, Niall CEO Mike Wilson said. Tivol is the company’s first major retailer, Wilson said….

Kauffman Foundation selects familiar face as new CEO

After a yearlong, nationwide search for a new CEO, the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation wound up selecting one of its own. The Kansas City-based foundation selected Wendy Guillies as the Foundation’s new president and CEO. Guillies, who previously served as interim CEO and vice president of communications for the foundation, joined the organization in April…

EyeVerify enters new European market with Vodafone deal

Biometrics tech company EyeVerify is continuing its global expansion into Europe with a new deal. The Kansas City-based firm recently announced a licensing and marketing agreement with Turkish security tech company Olcsan CAD. The deal makes Olcsan the exclusive distributor of EyeVerify’s eye vein biometrics technology, or Eyeprint ID, throughout Turkey. “We’re pleased to partner…

What’s in a name? MindMixer gets new moniker

A year after its move to Kansas City, MindMixer is making a name change. Formerly based in Omaha, MindMixer now will go by the name of its new software product, mySidewalk, which engages communities to share ideas and stay informed of new initiatives. “Like all businesses, the more we learn about the people we serve,…

Event-staffing tech firm Pop Bookings opens seed round at $250K

Kansas City-based Pop Bookings is scoring local love from angel investors as it hopes to bolster its seed round to further develop its online event-staffing platform. A recent graduate of business accelerator SparkLabKC, Pop Bookings opened its round in April at $250,000, with lead investments from Kansas City-area angel investors. Pop Bookings CEO Erika Klotz said…