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.

 

Tagged , ,
Featured Business
    Featured Founder
      [adinserter block="4"]

      2015 Startups to Watch

        stats here

        Related Posts on Startland News

        RFP365 partners with Kansas City, raises $950K

        By Tommy Felts | May 1, 2015

        On the heels of a six-figure raise, area tech firm RFP365 recently landed the City of Kansas City as a client for its software that eases the request for proposal process. The company’s deal with Kansas City was born from the city’s “Innovation Partnership” program, which affords entrepreneurs the opportunity to “test drive” their technologies…

        Study: Gov should take long-term approach to grow new businesses

        By Tommy Felts | May 1, 2015

        A recent study by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation reports that while governments have long supported entrepreneurship, new business creation is waning. The study — Guidelines for Local and State Governments to Promote Entrepreneurship — found that new businesses comprised about 8 percent of all U.S. businesses in 2011, down from roughly 15 percent in the…

        Kansas City’s Innovation Partnership program to expand

        By Tommy Felts | April 30, 2015

        Kansas City’s program to streamline the integration of technologies into City Hall is set to expand in hopes of attracting more entrepreneurial participation. The City of Fountain’s Innovation Partnership program plans to ramp up marketing and resources to welcome more companies hoping to test drive their technologies with the city, said Ashley Hand, Kansas City’s…

        Mid-America Angels race for record-setting investment year

        By Tommy Felts | April 30, 2015

        After investing nearly $1 million in the first quarter of 2015, regional investment network Mid-America Angels is on pace for its best year yet. Mid-America Angels injected $870,000 of funding into two area companies during the first three months of 2015, which sets it on a pace to surpass $3 million in investments for the…