Austin Barnes and Tommy Felts
Recent Articles by Austin Barnes and Tommy Felts
Photos: Sprint Accelerator leaders salute former managing director at demo day
Gratitude powered down the sixth cohort of the Sprint and Dairy Farmers of America-backed Corporate Accelerator Thursday. “I do have one more person that I need to acknowledge and that person is Doug Dresslear,” Tina Peterson, manager of the Sprint Accelerator, told a packed crowd at the National World War 1 museum’s J.C. Nichols Auditorium. …
Wave’s $405M acquisition a move toward ‘bigger, bolder, faster’ H&R Block, CEO says
The $405 million acquisition of Wave Financial wasn’t about H&R Block’s image — it was a move to join like-minded companies in the trenches of innovation, no matter the weight either surging business holds, said Jeff Jones. “We knew strategically that industry makes Wave a fit with H&R Block, and then it was a matter…
Rise Up, Get Started offers second chances with grants to formerly incarcerated entrepreneurs
Kansas City should be home to second chances, hope, and opportunities, said Johnny Waller Jr. “Kansas City has a rich history of uniting behind its citizens for the common good of its people and that’s what this event is,” said Waller, co-founder of Determination, Incorporated, addressing a wide-ranging audience Thursday at the inaugural Rise Up,…
Life kicked me around — then I found E-Scholars, says student-turned-UMKC mentor
Editor’s note: This article is sponsored by the University of Missouri-Kansas City’s Regnier Institute, but was independently produced by Startland News. Sticky, intricate, and at times invisible, Terri Jordan’s startup journey is a web spun of complexity, creativity and passion, she said. “I would’ve never met my business partner if I hadn’t said, ‘Hey, would…
Car vending machine drives into KC skyline with Carvana’s launch off Southwest Boulevard
Towering over Southwest Boulevard, Missouri’s first Carvana location has been parked in Kansas City and it’s finally ready to rev its engine, Amy O’Hara confirmed Thursday. “It’s a beautiful location and we’re looking forward to showing everyone our signature car vending machine experience and the new way to buy a car,” said O’Hara, Carvana associate…
Elite investors at exclusive CEO retreat: Don’t waste time; sell us on your billion-dollar idea
Trying to land the backing of a venture capital firm? Throw your pitch deck out the window, Chris Olsen advised a select group of Kansas City CEOs. “A lot of times founders will come and give us their pitch and they’ll start going through it and [they’re telling us] they’re profitable in 18-months. And we’ll…
Paws up! Scollar aims to fetch 200 jobs for KC, trades Silicon Valley for Animal Health Corridor
Building a business in Silicon Valley might seem sexy — but it isn’t always the right choice, Lisa Tamayo said. “I don’t know what you guys hear about the Coast, but hardware is quite challenging for any company in the Bay area because a lot of these Silicon Valley folks in San Francisco only like…
New Black & Veatch accelerator bent on changing the world, powered by LaunchKC
A new accelerator powered by LaunchKC is Black & Veatch’s attempt to “create the world that we want,” said Hyleme George, director of the freshly announced IgniteX CleanTech program. “It’s a world that we want to invest in to accelerate the adoption of sustainable infrastructure,” George continued. “What that means is a world where there’s…
Butter to eSports: Sprint Accelerator draws new class of startups from coasts to Canada
Josh Green is used to navigating the streets of Brooklyn, hand delivering artisanal butters, chilled in the back of a pickup, he recalled. As founder of Brooklyn Buttery — which crafted a line of flavor-packed, sustainably sourced compound butters designed to bring a high end restaurant experience to home cooks — the entrepreneur’s growth has now…
Experts: Coastal VCs getting FOMO on Kansas City; PayIt’s $100M+ investment proves it
Landing more than $100 million in funding is no small feat for PayIt — or any startup, John Thomson said with a mix of humble confidence. “Wins beget wins, and it helps to build the ecosystem,” said Thomson, CEO and co-founder of PayIt. Click here to read more about PayIt’s investment from Insight Partners. For Thomson,…