Tag: Kansas City G.I.F.T.

Tiki Taco ticks up giving alongside expansion; CEO owns up to taco shop’s neighborhood impact model

By Tommy Felts / October 23, 2025

A month-long campaign in the popular Kansas City-based chain offers easy add-on: joining KC GIFT’s network of donors  Restaurant executive Eric Knott wants Tiki Taco’s operators to own the neighborhoods into which the popular taco shop expands, he said, but that doesn’t just mean dominating the fast-casual market in each pocket of Kansas City. “Our…

Read More >

KC GIFT orders a full meal with $100K Wah Gwan grant: Job creation (with a side of inspiration)

By Tommy Felts / October 7, 2025

Young people on Kansas City’s east side need to see examples of what can be achieved when someone who looks like them works hard — and wins, said Tanyech Yarbrough, pledging to use her recent grant funding from KC G.I.F.T. to mirror entrepreneurship to her community, as well as expand her Troost eatery. Yarbrough’s Wah…

Read More >

BeVel’s edge on Troost: Scaling culture alongside barbershop’s executive clean up

By Tommy Felts / September 26, 2025

A young Casie Murff jumped from cutting lawns to shaping lines, but it wasn’t until decades later — after embracing support from groups like The Porter House KC, Kansas City G.I.F.T. and a resurgent Troost business community — that the entrepreneur’s vision truly started buzzing. “Sometimes as entrepreneurs, you need that reassurance,” Murff, founder of…

Read More >

KC GIFT launches ‘Vibe the City’ passport to showcase Black-owned arts, entertainment venues

By Tommy Felts / September 18, 2025

A newly published mini-guide to Black-owned arts and entertainment venues across Kansas City is expected to push community members deeper into the metro’s rich Black business ecosystem, said Brandon Calloway, highlighting a range of cultural and nightlife destinations.   “Vibe the City” passports are available now at the G.I.F.T. Business Center at 5008 Prospect Ave.,…

Read More >

‘Troost is not scary’: Kansas City equity walk highlights Black business revival

By Tommy Felts / August 13, 2025

Editor’s note: This story was originally published by The Beacon, a member of the KC Media Collective, which also includes Startland News, KCUR 89.3, American Public Square, Kansas City PBS/Flatland, and Missouri Business Alert. Click here to read the original story from The Beacon, an online news outlet focused on local, in-depth journalism in the public interest.…

Read More >