Tag: Victor Gutwein

Big wins up the odds: KC’s standing among Midwest peer cities rises in new M25 ranking

By Tommy Felts / August 9, 2022

Headline-grabbing success stories and newly boosted state funding for startup support are a powerful combination, said Victor Gutwein, detailing Kansas City’s higher 2022 spot on M25’s annual ranking of Midwest startup cities. Kansas City rose to No. 11 of 59 in the deep dive report — which explores how micro-environments in the Midwest are performing…

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Meg Judy, EquipmentShare, and Brett Calhoun, Scale, accept the Midwest Madness win on behalf of Columbia, Missouri, from Katie Birge and Victor Gutwein, M25; photo courtesy of EquipmentShare

‘Homegrown unicorn’ helped this startup hub beat the bracket (and its top seed Kansas competition)

By Tommy Felts / June 29, 2022

Startland News’ Startup Road Trip series explores innovative and uncommon ideas finding success in rural America and Midwestern startup hubs outside the Kansas City metro. This series is possible thanks to the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, which leads a collaborative, nationwide effort to identify and remove large and small barriers to new business creation. A…

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Who’s getting funded in KC? The answer requires a long look in the mirror, analysts say

By Tommy Felts / September 21, 2021

Editor’s note: Startland News asked industry experts to take an early look at the data behind the 2021 Kansas City Venture Capital-Backed Companies Report — the culmination of a three-month collaboration between UMKC’s Technology Venture Studio and Startland News, and presented by Mylo, a Lockton Company. Below are some of their leading takeaways, along with…

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Kansas City; photo courtesy of Midwest + Startups

New ranking: How KC can break into the Top 10 Midwest startup cities (and why it hasn’t yet)

By Tommy Felts / August 18, 2021

A freshly released ranking of Midwest startup hubs shows Kansas City maintaining its years-long position at No. 12, but warns — despite a few recent headline-grabbing wins — the metro faces the threat of stagnation without increased activity, startup reinvestment and government support. “You had to get more funding and big exits just to stay…

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Justin Davis, BacklotCars; Back2KC 2018

Destination exit: Less talk, more acceleration drove quiet BacklotCars to $425M deal

By Tommy Felts / September 11, 2020

In the half-decade run-up to BacklotCars’ historic $425 million exit, the Kansas City startup remained largely under the radar, Justin Davis acknowledged, noting the intentional move became less about strategy and more focused on team values. “Like many people in Kansas City and the Midwest, we all prefer getting to work rather than talking about…

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