MidxMidwest returns: Seizing opportunities from one-on-one founder-VC meetups more important than ever, organizers say

It’s a critical time within the startup funding ecosystem, Dan Kerr and Maggie Kenefake agreed, noting the slow tick of investments across the region present a core challenge — and opportunities — to be addressed by this fall’s MidxMidwest event.

“If you look at capital, 80 percent went to the biggest three states again, and so it’s thinner,” explained Kerr, a Flyover Capital partner and co-founder of one of the region’s leading venture capital summits. “We hope that these interactions at MidxMidwest are really productive and create more activity for Kansas City and the surrounding area.”

Dan Kerr, a Flyover Capital partner and co-founder of MidxMidwest, speaks at the 2023 summit in Kansas City; photo by Taylor Wilmore, Startland News

This year’s event — set for Nov. 14 at Hotel Kansas City — aims to bring together Midwest B2B tech companies that are ready to raise capital and more than 80 venture capitalists for one-on-one conversations. Organizers are expecting about 250 attendees, including corporate innovation groups and ecosystem supporters, Kerr said.

“It’s centered around tech, so it’s going to be founders who are somewhere on the technology spectrum,” he added. “Many of the investors are B2B-tech oriented, but that’s just the center point. There are also some people with hardware that have come in the past and still gotten some relationships out of the event.”

This is the third year for MidxMidwest, organizer and co-founder Kenefake said, noting it’s becoming a more established and impactful gathering in the region.

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“This year is a turning point for the event in terms of its permanence and innovation landscape in the Heartland,” said Kenefake, founder of Iron Prairie Ventures. “There’s a lot at play; so much change around us. There’s the election, feds cutting interest rates. We hope that the exit markets are going to begin reopening from what we’ve seen the past couple of years.”

“It’s an exciting time where people are more optimistic and eager to connect with investors,” she added.

An audience of investors, startup founders, ecosystem builders and champions listens to KCMO Mayor Quinton Lucas as he addresses the 2023 MidxMidwest event; photo by Nikki Overfelt Chifalu

It’s also an opportune time for investing, Kenefake said, with valuations and deals totals settling significantly over the past couple of years within a constricted market.

“That still tends to be the case because capital has been hard to come by,” she continued. “What you have now are the companies that are out raising — and are able to do so successfully — are really creating something of elastic value and they’ve had to work really hard to get to a place where they feel like they can go out and raise. So for investors, the prices are still more reasonable than they were a few years ago.”

Click here for a founder application to participate in MidxMidwest.

Chris Simpson, Polsinelli, leads a panel conversation with Jody Brazil, FireMon, and Daniel Kennedy, BioNexus KC, at MidxMidwest; photo by Taylor Wilmore, Startland News

The format for this year’s event will be the same as last year with a focus on curated one-on-one networking in the afternoon of the daylong summit, Kenefake and Kerr noted. 

“We know that’s where a lot of the magic happens,” Kenefake added. “ The real value is the opportunity for investors and founders to optimize connecting with as many people as they possibly can. I think the event facilitates that really well.”

For the morning sessions, organizers plan to incorporate the corporate community with breakouts that include the “Business of Healthcare” with Digital Health KC, and “Go-Market Workshop” with GrowthX. A lunch and keynote presentation are planned, as well as social events in the evening.

“I’m excited to just bring the community together again for another great session,” Kerr said.

“I think we’ll continue to see some partners in the region that will tack on some adjacent events that should be interesting, as well,” Kenefake added.