Bellwethr acquired by ecommerce payments platform; merger to boost Shopify brands

By Tommy Felts | September 22, 2022

A Kansas City startup’s machine learning tech is expected to bring its new owner’s vision to reality: driving new revenue for Shopify brands plagued by churn among subscribers. Bellwethr announced the acquisition Thursday, detailing the company’s merger with Park City, Utah-based Retextion. As part of the undisclosed deal, Retextion will integrate Bellwethr’s popular churn reduction…

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Winning pitch: Leading KC fintech founder deposits trio of new bank partnerships 

By Tommy Felts | September 18, 2020

One of Kansas City’s prominent fintech and nonprofit leaders has secured partnerships with three of the regions leading banks.  Donald Hawkins, founder and CEO of Griffin Technologies and a co-leader in KC Collective, was awarded pilot projects with Emprise Bank, Fidelity Bank, and Intrust Bank, Thursday — part of the Wichita-based NXSTAGE Pilot Competition, hosted…

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Kansas City’s Top VC-Backed Companies in 2020

By Tommy Felts | August 31, 2020

The 2020 Top Venture Capital-Backed Companies List reflects a range of success stories and COVID-era challenges among Kansas City’s community of growth-stage, venture-backed companies. [pullquote] More ahead The list of Kansas City’s Top VC-Backed Companies is the jumping-off point for a series of Startland News analysis pieces, breaking down some of the trends behind the…

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Trio of KC fintech startups named finalists in Wichita-based NXTSTAGE pilot competition

By Tommy Felts | July 30, 2020

Three emerging fintech startups with Kansas City ties have found new entrepreneurial support southwest of the metro. Griffin, Destiny, and Bellwethr were announced as finalists in the Wichita-based, NXTSTAGE Pilot Competition, Wednesday — an effort designed to propel early-stage companies to the next stage of startup growth, largely through mentorship and connections to companies and regional…

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