Everybody from Kansas City has a Back2KC story. Here’s mine.

Growing up in Warrensburg, Missouri in the 1980s, we referred to Kansas City as simply "The City."

As a teenager, I recall making the 50-mile drive west to shop at Bannister Mall and The Plaza with my mom, family outings to Royals games and Worlds of Fun, and celebrating special occasions at The American Restaurant. After high school, my parents moved on from Missouri, but I chose to remain in "The Burg" to attend Central Missouri State University (now UCM). During that time, I made a point of connecting with the Kansas City business community through my participation in PRSA and Advertising Club events and a summer internship at the Heart of America United Way.

Ultimately, my PR degree led me away from KC to an entertainment publicity job in Los Angeles in 1990, under legendary Hollywood press agent Phil Paladino who was also originally from Kansas City. I've been in LA ever since, but somehow coming back to KC still feels like coming home. I stay connected to the region by organizing Warrensburg High School Class of ’86 reunions, through my network of Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity brothers and as an advisor to the UCM public relations program. My marketing agency collective, The Winders Group, now employs two people in Kansas City and I'm proud to announce we just signed our first client there, advertising technology startup Pushly.

My recent networking in KC led me to the Kansas City Startup Foundation and Matthew Marcus, who like most businesspeople in KC, was generous with his contacts and made introductions which have already generated to very real opportunities for TWG in KC. I was honored when KCSF invited me to participate in its second annual Back2KC event last week. They rolled out the red carpet to showcase Kansas City's vibrant startup ecosystem and enroll expats like me to serve as "Champions" of the city in our respective spheres of influence.

Barbecue, jazz and Chiefs Kingdom come immediately to mind when most people think of Kansas City, but a Back2KC revealed a much more interesting business story. Kansas City's growth and its spirit of entrepreneurship and innovation are palpable and the city's business leaders want everyone to know it. I had the honor of meeting Mayor Quinton Lucas, Back2KC co-host and KCRise Fund managing director Darcy Howe and Kansas City Area Development Council president and CEO Tim Cowden. Each of them, along with nearly every other high-profile speaker throughout the two-day event vowed to open their contacts and resources to those of us committed to bringing more business to the city.

Graciously emceed by KCSF CEO Adam Arredondo and flawlessly produced by its director of experiences Jessica Powell, the event took place at several locations throughout the city. From the mayor's welcome remarks at Two Light Luxury Apartments, to economic development sessions at co-working hub Plexpod, a fireside chat with H&R Block CEO Jeff Jones at Evergy Ventures, design and sports panels at Backlot Cars and a rooftop reception WeWork Corrigan Station, our hosts put the city's modern facilities and urban redevelopment on full display.

During a bus tour of the city's “Opportunity Zones,” entrepreneur and Thou Mayest founder Bo Nelson shared some of the city’s rich history as we rode through the historic “18th & Vine” and Crossroads Arts District, River Market, the modern KC Urban Youth Academy baseball complex, the Nelson Atkins Museum of Art and many other local cultural and business touchstones. Full Scale founder Matt DeCoursey hosted us at his Sprint Center suite to see rising country music star Luke Combs in concert. And topping off the week was an outing to to see the Chiefs take on the Indianapolis Colts at Arrowhead Stadium.

Beyond the glitz and glamor put on by our hosts, here are my impressions and 10 key takeaways from Back2KC event and the amazing city it celebrated:

• A Story Ripe for Telling – While Kansas City’s story is conveyed daily through its companies, industries and individual artists and entrepreneurs, it is actively seeking a narrative that will resonate nationally and internationally.
• Civic Alignment – While each necessarily has their own agenda, the city’s startup community, technology and innovation hubs and area economic development organizations are unified in their effort to kick Kansas City’s growth into high gear.
• Economic Momentum – The Royals’ 2015 World Series win, the USDA relocating to Kansas City, a new airport under construction, the 2023 NFL Draft, a 2026 World Cup bid and a skyline peppered with construction cranes prove that Kanas City is on the move.
• Regional Pride – There’s a sense of pride in Kansas City that goes beyond its sports teams and includes both Kansas City, Missouri and Kansas City, Kansas. Made in KC and Charlie Hustle are just two examples of brands being built in the image of KC pride.
• Standard of Living – The cost basis for technology developers is 20 percent less than the national average and Kansas City is the fourth most affordable city in the U.S. According to Forbes, it is also the No. 2 city for high wage jobs.
• Tax Incentives – Real estate and business tax incentives in “Opportunity Zones” make Kansas City an attractive place to set up shop or expand operations in the middle of the country.
• Investment Opportunity – There is an active angel investment community with ties to institutional and venture capital on both coasts, which could be emboldened by a firm with the vision to capitalize on a market poised for an innovation explosion over the next ten years.
• Culture – You may know Kansas City’s reputation for barbeque and jazz, which are alive and well, but did you also know Zagat included in its list of the 30 Most Exciting Food Cities in 2017? Combined with its 200 fountains, world class museums, many murals, microbreweries and a thriving independent music scene, KC is increasingly being recognized for its role as a midwestern cultural center.
• Humility – Known as one of the “nicest” cities in the U.S. I’ve always been impressed by how peoples make eye contact and say hello to one another on the street. I’ve never met a stranger in Kansas City, which is why it’s so easy to feel immediately at home there.
• Diversity – The city is actively working to eliminate lines that marked its segregated past.
  
  

Among the best ideas I heard was to take the city’s popular KC Streetcar line east and west and a proposal to make all of public transportation in Kansas City free.

Inspired by my Back2KC experience, my vision is to create a “trade route” between Los Angeles and Kansas City through my networks in both cities. While it will be a multi-year endeavor, one opportunity we are already exploring is how to better connect the film, television and commercial production and post production communities. In the near-term I have vowed to make the communication resources of The Winders Group available to help share KC's story in whichever way we can, starting with this post. I also intend to build on our agency’s operations center and have begun discussions with food industry partners to bring production and distribution of my spicy food company, Pepper Bandits, to Kansas City.

This is Kansas City’s time to shine. I hope others who attended last week will take the opportunity to show off the city we love by telling their Back2KC story too.

https://www.back2kc.org
http://liveworkkc.com
http://pushly.com
http://www.thinkkc.com/
https://kcrisefund.com
https://kcrising.com/