Tag: Pipeline Pathfinder

A night for knock-outs: Pipeline gala adds glitz to the hard-fought battles of entrepreneurship (Photos)

By Tommy Felts / March 4, 2025

Midwest means resilience, Melissa Vincent told a black-tie crowd of entrepreneurs gathered Friday evening in the Grand Hall at Union Station, ultimately sharing the stage with not one, but two Innovator of the Year honorees. “When they get knocked down, knocked out, they get back up and they stay in the ring,” continued Vincent, CEO…

Read More >

Founder Problems: Podcast captures the ‘messy middle’ you don’t see on entrepreneurs’ highlight reels

By Tommy Felts / February 13, 2025

A new Kansas City-based podcast is skipping over the fairy tale stories of founding a startup; instead diving straight into the messy parts, the hosts shared. Founder Problems — hosted by local entrepreneurs Sarah Schumacher, Zach Oshinbanjo, and Lee Zuvanich — is embracing the aspects of starting and running a business that no one wants…

Read More >

Pipeline doubles-down on diverse voices: Meet its new class of Pathfinder entrepreneurs

By Tommy Felts / February 7, 2025

Programs built to support emerging founders who are primed to break through — despite entering entrepreneurship from a different starting point — have never been more needed, said Melissa Vincent, announcing the newest class of Pipeline Pathfinders. “In today’s climate, programs like Pathfinder are not just valuable — they’re essential,” said Vincent, CEO of Pipeline…

Read More >

Pipeline adds top founders to its network: Meet 14 fellows tasked with building the Midwest together 

By Tommy Felts / February 7, 2025

The newest class of Pipeline fellows embodies the elite Midwest network’s founder-first focus on industry-agnostic collaboration and support, said Melissa Vincent, noting the power of tapping barrier-breaking perspectives to solve problems and build world-class companies side by side. “We have an incredible depth of entrepreneurs who are all focused on building high-growth, scalable businesses, but…

Read More >

Founder earns Pipeline’s ‘best pitch,’ says network’s lifelong support is the real award

By Tommy Felts / March 1, 2024

Pipeline judges announced Megan O’Rear had the best pitch Thursday, but the Celerity Enterprises founder was left momentarily speechless when they named her winner of the group’s annual showcase and competition. “It just validates coming back to Kansas City,” said O’Rear, who also serves as the startup’s CEO. “Pipeline wants to help everybody that they…

Read More >