A traumatic childhood experience ultimately led Travis Thonen to start his own business to help others restore their houses after fire, water, smoke and hail damage. “I personally went through an experience with my family many years ago when our family home in Raytown, Missouri almost burnt to the ground one winter,” Thonen said. “I […]

Your business is your baby, and much like parenthood, business ownership isn’t for the squeamish. Some entrepreneurs fall into it by surprise. Others plan and strategize, waiting for just the right… moment, opportunity, cash flow, partner, etc. The thing about starting a business is that waiting for the perfect time may mean waiting forever. More […]

Come join UMKC Small Business & Technology Development Center on May 11 for the 2017 Independence Regional Business Expo. Break-out sessions will include: Next Level Understanding of the Realities of Cyber Risk and the need for Cyber Security Funding a Business: Traditional vs Non-Traditional Social Media Operating a Virtual Business This exciting day of learning […]

Cat Coquillette, a recent graduate of FastTrac NewVenture with the Urban Business Growth Initiative scholarship is ready to help you learn how to create art that sells. You can join her for the first class on Skillshare for a course dedicated to teaching artists and designers tips to boost their passive income through selling artwork. After attending courses […]

KANSAS CITY, MO – May 2, 2016 Before on-boarding with UMKC-SBTDC, Richard Wood was Chief Operating Officer of Eagle Datagistics, an Oracle computer software and hardware reseller. He played an essential role in Eagle’s business development, strategic marketing and public relations. Most of his time was spent on the frontlines of networking events cultivating strategic […]

UMKC SBTDC client and ScaleUP! graduate El Padrino Apparel and Soccer Nation is the winner of the KCK Chamber’s Small Business of the Year Award. Owner Raul Villegas’s company not only runs an indoor-soccer league, but also has a retail store that sells soccer apparel and equipment. Congrats to Raul and El Padrino! Photo courtesy […]

URBAN BUSINESS GROWTH INITIATIVE OFFERS SCHOLARSHIPS THIS SPRING KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI (February 12, 2015) —– The Urban Business Growth Initiative has already created economic impact with 18 business owners in Kansas City, Mo., and will help even more with scholarships to selected programs this spring. To date, more than 100 residents and/or business owners have […]

JUNK Architects, PC, Kansas City, receives 2015 Excellence in Business Award JUNK Architects, PC, of Kansas City, was honored Tuesday, Feb. 3, as a winner of the 2015 University of Missouri Extension Business Development Program’s (BDP) Excellence in Missouri Business Award. The awards highlight outstanding achievements by firms that have worked with the Missouri Small […]

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – A national initiative targeting successful small businesses is launching here in Kansas City. More than 60 cities applied for the opportunity, but only eight cities made the cut. One Northland business called Weave Gotcha Covered is one of Kansas City’s selected businesses. It’s a workshop full of women, but focused on […]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Nov. 10, 2014 Contact: Jill Meyer 816.235.6063; meyerjz@umkc.edu Applications Open for ScaleUP! Kansas City Support will help local companies scale up and grow KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Applications are now open for the ScaleUP! Kansas City program, which will recruit an elite cohort of business owners to grow and scale their businesses. For […]

KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI (August 8, 2014) — After a months-long search, Lisa Cordes has been chosen as the new director of Artist INC, the innovative program begun in 2007 by former director Diane Scott that delivers training and tools for artists to learn entrepreneurial skills specific to fine arts businesses. A program of the UMKC […]

Next up on our Ice House: Lessons Learned series is participant Mark Franzke of Franzke Stringed Instruments. “Ice House taught me that you start small,” Franzke explains, “and you test your assumptions.” By testing your assumptions regarding your business’s feasibility, you will be able to “find out what your customer really wants, because they’re going […]

Next up on our Ice House: Lessons Learned series is participant Nathan Kincaid of Idea Machine. Kincaid explains that the most important thing he learned in regards to starting a business is to think about solving other people’s problems first and foremost. “Rather than force or put forth what I want to do,” he explains, […]

In less than a year, the Urban Business Growth Initiative has graduated its first Ice House class, held 125 counseling sessions with more than 40 clients, and helped clients add 32 jobs. Counseled clients have also reported $7 million in increased sales. The Urban Business Growth Initiative features training programs and technical assistance provided by the […]

The first three Phases of Export Training have laid the groundwork for building a successful export plan. In Phase IV, you and your team will actually assemble all the parts of the planning process and form it into a strategic export plan. The plan will provide you with a concise road map covering all aspects […]

So you have a business idea: a food truck, an online boutique, or a medical device. But how do you get beyond the idea phase to where you can say, “I own a small business”? The UMKC SBTDC is here to help. We provide small business counseling and coaching and trainings to guide entrepreneurs along […]

Polsinelli cordially invites you to join us for a timely event focused on immigration issues for emerging growth companies and featuring special guests Toby Rush and Riddhiman Das of EYEVERIFY. The program will followed by a short reception where you can meet and mingle among colleagues to discuss the expanding possibilities for your business. About […]

This past winter, we held our first Ice House Entrepreneurship Program, an innovate course that teaches its participants to think like an entrepreneur while testing the feasibility of their business idea with the business canvas model. Participant Lisa Murphy of Lifestyle with Lisa shares her Lessons Learned from the Ice House Program, and what entrepreneurs […]

In the previous two posts, we discussed the assessment or viability of exporting, the planning process and steps involved, and the one-on-one more detailed discussions of implementation of a plan. For the Phase III portion of the Export Training process, you will meet, with other potential exporters and a host of export support and service […]

The UMKC Innovation Center is pleased to offer the following trainings at reduced or no cost for residents and businesses in Kansas City, MO with emphasis in the urban core.   The following are $75 per class: FastTrac® NewVenture™ September 24-November 26, 2013, 6:00 PM-9:00 PM OR January 14-February 11, 2014, 9:00 AM-4:00 PM In […]

In the first post, I discussed the first step toward exporting and how to begin training.  In Phase II, your SBTDC counselor will schedule an appointment with you to visit your company’s location and meet with you to go into more detail on the key components of exporting.  In this meeting, you’ll have the chance […]

Our September 2013 Tech ESP will feature Sandy Kemper, founder, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive of C2FO.     ABOUT OUR SPEAKER: Sandy Kemper is the founder of C2FO and serves as Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive. In addition, Kemper is the founder and Chairman of the Board of The Collectors […]

Exporting can be a profitable business!  Are you ready? Phase One The best place to start exploring export markets and their viability is to get some training and more in-depth information so you can determine if your company is a good fit for the export market. In most regions of the U.S., the Small Business […]

Our fifth Technology Entrepreneur Speakers Program (Tech ESP) will feature Tom Hilleary, Founder and Manager of Island Radar Company.     ABOUT OUR SPEAKER: Tom Hilleary is the founder and manager of Island Radar Company, LLC. Island Radar has developed and introduced an innovative radar-based vehicle detection system for high-speed rail railroad crossings. The company […]

We’re excited to offer new and technologically relevant workshops starting this August at the UMKC SBTDC. Workshops range from how to find crowd sourcing opportunities online, how to use Microsoft’s new software Office 365, and how to locate freelancers to outsource projects within your company—just to name a few. These workshops are only $35 each, […]

As cities across the nation celebrate World Trade Week, join us on May 23 to learn how Kansas City is competing on a global scale. Every year, the President of the United States declares the third week of May to be “World Trade Week”. This declaration is to encourage the international trade community to come […]

Our fourth Technology Entrepreneur Speakers Program (Tech ESP) will feature Bruce Ianni, Founder and CEO of Innovadex. ABOUT OUR SPEAKER: Bruce Ianni, 2008 Pipeline Innovator of the Year, is a recognized leader and change agent in optimizing sales, marketing and product development processes through the use of Internet and mobile technologies in the global Life […]

Join us in advancing discoveries, inventions and innovations at the University of Missouri in Columbia.     Featured speakers include: Han Chen, Managing Director, Kapyon Ventures, LLC Han has extensive experience in the development of early stage companies, raising startup capital and forming industry partnerships. As Co-founder and Managing Director, he is responsible for the […]

THE BATTLE TO BUILD A BETTER CITY: HACK OF THE SEXES Boys vs Girls takes on a whole new meaning as we promote gender diversity in technology and compete to develop practical, open source solutions that solve civic problems. DO YOU HAVE MAD SKILLS, GREAT IDEAS AND A DESIRE TO COMPETE? We believe that the […]

Our third Technology Entrepreneur Speakers Program (Tech ESP) will feature Ben Legg, CEO of Adknowledge.       ABOUT OUR SPEAKER: Ben Legg is the CEO of Adknowledge and an unabashed Big Data evangelist. Ben came to Adknowledge in October of 2011 from European Directories, where he was COO. He previously held the same position […]

Date: April 4, 2013 Time: 6:00 PM-8:00 PM Location: Ennovation Center 201 N Forest Ave Independence, MO 64050 Fee: $10 Register: Online Studies show that nearly 600 million people on use social media to decide what to eat on a regular basis. Sharing food recommendations and information peer-to-peer online is becoming the premier way your […]

Missouri Department of Economic Development invites you to participate at COMPUTEX TAIPEI 2013. Major exhibitors include renowned companies like Acer, AMD, Asus, Gigabyte, Intel, Microsoft, MSI, NVIDIA, SanDisk, Transcend and more! The department is offering companies a chance to exhibit in the Missouri booth during COMPUTEX TAIPEI. The department is looking for companies around the […]

Our second Tech ESP will feature Kevin McGinnis, Vice President of Product Platforms for Sprint.     ABOUT OUR SPEAKER: Kevin McGinnis is vice president of Product Platforms within the Product Development and Operations organization at Sprint. He is responsible for developing platforms and product lines, ranging from core services like voice and messaging to […]

Mark Allen was recently interviewed by KMBZ Business Channel’s Krista Klaus during her Power Lunch segment, where they discussed the UMKC SBTDC and Digital Sandbox KC. Listen by clicking below.

February 19 kicks off our first Technology Entrepreneur Speakers Program (Tech ESP). Davyeon Ross, Former CEO and Founder of Digital Sports Ventures, will be speaking.   ABOUT OUR SPEAKER: An innovative technology leader and widely recognized entrepreneur, Davyeon Ross has more than 12 years of experience in the technology space. In Oct. 2011, Digital Sports […]

MO STEP=UP Export Training Program is an innovative and interactive program designed to develop Missouri’s exporters of tomorrow. This three-month export training program is divided into four phases. Each participant is assigned a coach during the training process to assist in: • Developing the next steps for your company to expand your sales on a […]

The 2nd China International Import Expo You are cordially invited to expand your business development interests to China and Greater Asia. Funded in part through the MO STEP=UP program, the state of Missouri will be leading a trade mission to Kunshan City, Jiangsu Province, China to participate in the 2nd China International Import Expo on […]

The KC Animal Health Corridor is now accepting applications for the fifth annual KC Animal Health Investment Forum on Aug. 27, 2013, in Kansas City, Mo. The forum will showcase animal health and nutrition companies from throughout the world. The selection committee will consider companies that meet the following criteria: • Seeking $500,000 to $20 […]

Join Kansas City’s leaders in business, technology and higher education. Be among the first to hear a major announcement about the Digital Sandbox – a hub that will help techies develop and test new technologies for commercialization. It’s efforts like these that will drive growth in the local and regional economy and put Kansas City […]

Our own Business Development Specialist here at the UMKC SBTDC, Mark Allen, was featured on Entrepreneur KC Radio with Sara Davidson and Jason Grill on Thursday, December 6. Listen and find out about our upcoming events and classes for 2013, including our FastTrac New Venture, FastTrac Growth Venture, and FastTrac Tech Venture courses. Interested in […]

As we dive into the busy season of training, events and our ongoing work counseling small businesses, we are excited to have cut the ribbon (digitally-speaking) on our new website. Here at the SBTDC, we are strong believers in good tools.  This site is a tool designed to give you easy access to information on […]

Arsalon provides high value Internet infrastructure technology and services to organizations emerging in the new e-economy, enabling them to focus on their core business and increase their profitability. These services are provided by our local community-based Internet infrastructure centers supporting the needs of the regional, national and international technology community.