Popular ScaleUp! KC program welcoming area applicants
September 9, 2015 | Bobby Burch
ScaleUp! Kansas City is now accepting applications from area entrepreneurs that hope to boost their businesses through mentorship and a strong network of peers.
The program, which is now in the midst of its second class, welcomes about 15 businesspeople that aim to push their firm’s revenue past $1 million annually. ScaleUp! KC connects entrepreneurs with mentors, peers and resources to grow their businesses.
Operated by the University of Missouri-Kansas City Innovation Center, the program’s third cohort will be accepting applications until Nov. 23 and will begin in January.
“We know it’s important to attract and recruit companies to Kansas City, but growing our own [and] helping our homegrown businesses scale is critical to strengthening our economy, creating jobs and improving lives,” said Maria Meyers, director of the UMKC Innovation Center. “ScaleUP! KC wraps vital resources around Kansas City entrepreneurs who already know success and want to build bigger, better businesses right here in Kansas City. We’re energized that so many entrepreneurs — 32 to date — are using the program to strengthen their businesses and to create economic impact.”
ScaleUp! KC director Jill Meyer said that the program has made a significant impact on the entrepreneurs’ businesses since its January 2015 start.
Jowler Creek Vineyard & Winery recently received a loan to add a 6,000 square-foot facility to triple its footprint and increase production by more than 300 percent. El Padrino Apparel and Soccer Nation in June won the Kansas City Kansas Chamber of Commerce’s Small Business of the Year award.
“It’s been quite impressive to see the progress these companies have made in such a short time,” Meyer said in a release.
To be accepted into the program, entrepreneurs must lead a company that’s at least two-years-old, drive annual sales between $150,000 and $750,000, have a market that can generate more than $1 million in revenue and the determination to exceed that mark.
Click here to learn more about those now in the program.
Featured Business
2015 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
Blooom makes national TV debut
Overland Park-based financial tech firm Blooom hopes to seed new growth opportunities after a recent national TV appearance. Blooom CEO Chris Costello and President Greg Smith hopped onto Fox Business Tuesday to discuss 401(k) management and their company, which created an online 401(k) management tool that’s seen solid early traction. The tool uses a flower in various…
KC tech firms respond to ‘bleak’ millennial voter turnout
A meager millennial voter turnout in Kansas City’s recent municipal elections is compelling local organizations to combat apathy with technology. More Kansas Citians 90 and older cast ballots in the City of Fountain’s 2014 municipal elections than voters under 30, according to a study by Kansas City-based civic engagement company mySidewalk. A paltry 0.7 percent…
Lean Lab announces new, mature fellowship class
The Lean Lab, an education innovation incubator, announced its second cohort of fellows who hope to bring meaningful change to Kansas City education. In the 2015 class, 10 fellows with seven solutions for Kansas City’s urban education will be participating in the Lean Lab’s summer program. Fellows arrive at the program with ideas in various…
KC newbie Rex tops $1M in revenue, kicks off hiring
Surging growth at one of Kansas City’s newest startups is leading it to hire a staff six times its current size. Rex, an animal health tech company that recently graduated from the Techstars-led Sprint Accelerator, is hoping to quickly boost its headcount from two to 12. In the days following a pitch at the accelerator’s…