News Stories
Their KC company didn’t sell a single puzzle during the pandemic; today the best-sellers need restocked ASAP
The puzzle finally fits together this holiday season for Tim and Stefanie Ekeren as the couple discovers the missing pieces that kept Kansas City Puzzle Company boxed on the shelf for more than a year. The small business, based in Mission, Kansas, offers a line of 10 puzzles, most featuring Kansas City-area landmarks or illustrations…
How a KC partnership helped Idle Smart avoid a cold start that could’ve stalled its recovery
Editor’s note: The following story is sponsored by Academy Bank, a Kansas City based community bank, and is part of a series of features spotlighting some of the bank’s startup and small business partners. Wasted time is wasted money — a notion at the forefront of Idle Smart, a Kansas City IoT tech company built…
This KC kombucha brewer brought back North America’s most mysterious tropical fruit; the time to taste it is ripe now
When the forest starts to smell like bananas, it means the pawpaws are ready for harvesting, Amy Goldman shared. “I’d never heard of pawpaws until last year when one of our farmer friends brought us a bunch of them. We tried them in our kombucha, and it sold out so fast. It was incredible. But…
A service you never knew you needed: Buying chickens from a vending machine at the Mayor’s Christmas Tree
As children gave life to the ice terrace above Friday, volunteers and shoppers were giving light to local and global charities at a newly placed installation of vending machines — stocked with donation opportunities, not snacks — at Crown Center. The hottest “selling” item so far in Kansas City: a trio of chickens for $18. Three Giving…
New nonprofit surprises first-ever $20K ‘changemaker’ grant winner; he already knows how he’ll invest it
Pastor Adrian Roberson was initially too stunned to speak Thursday when he was awarded a $20,000 grant for KC United — a youth sports initiative he co-founded in 2009 with his wife Vicky. But the duo already have plans for the money: spreading blessings. “I want to say, ‘Glory to God,’” Adrian Roberson shared moments after…
