News Stories

New in KC: Elizabeth Pishny treks from farming to human trafficking, Facebook to Google, Austin to KC

Editor’s note: New in KC is an ongoing profile series that highlights newly relocated members of the Kansas City startup community, their reasons for a change of scenery, and what they’ve found so far in KC. This series is sponsored by C2FO, a Leawood-based, global financial services company. Click here to read more New in KC profiles. While Elizabeth Pishny is…

Tony Bien, Sandbox by Swell Spark

WATCH: Master craftsman builds on military career — a catalyst to avoid wasted opportunity

Tony Bien cuts lumber. He might even cut into a melon. But service in the Kansas Army National Guard taught the hands-on force behind Swell Spark’s in-house design workshop to avoid cutting corners. “I’ve been very blessed in my career with the Army and with what I am doing now,” said Bien, who serves as…

Risa Stein, SeeInMe; Alex Burton and Leo Esposito, Bozt; Rebecca Simons, CuePlay; Michael Eichenseer, VRdojo; Jason Reid, KNIMO; and Jill and Justin Bertelsen, Bertelsen Education

Meet six newly funded companies helping get KC’s economy ‘back on track’ with Digital Sandbox

Digital Sandbox funding is a game-changer for CuePlay — one of six companies selected for the proof of concept program’s latest cohort — said founder Rebecca Simons, who first launched the idea two years ago at Techstars’ Startup Weekend in Kansas City. “It allows us to finish the development of a beta app and get it…

Andrew Potter, Approach, Tile Five

Tile Five climbs higher with $1.5M seed round for Approach spinout, set to onboard 200+ gyms by year’s end

A $1.5 million funding round for Kansas City-based Approach is expected to further develop the future of gym operations — a growing industry, primed for disruption, Andrew Potter said.  “Gym operations are becoming more and more efficient and are leveraging technology and data to help drive business decisions,” explained Potter, founding partner.  A platform of Tile…

Amazon has applied for building permits to renovate the former Tesla space at 450 Nichols Rd. on the Country Club Plaza; photo courtesy of Kevin Collison, CityScene KC

Amazon taps Country Club Plaza for its first brick-and-mortar retail store in Kansas City

Editor’s note: The following story originally published by CityScene KC, an online news source focused on Greater Downtown Kansas City. Click here to read the original story or here to sign up for the weekly CityScene KC email review. The first Amazon retail outlet in the Kansas City metro is in the works for the Country Club Plaza, according…