The City of Kansas City, Missouri, has budgeted a $900,000 investment in KC BizCare offices as part of a broader plan to better support the metro's entrepreneurial community.
WHaile supporters in Kansas City's entrepreneurial community love this city as much as the next fan. They acknowledge that Kansas City is a difficult place to start and sustain a business.
Newly approved tranches of funds — $900,000 Inside KCMO Budget for 2024-2025 Expand your offerings within KC Biz Care Office “This is just the beginning,” say leading entrepreneurs who have lobbied the city for greater financial involvement in emerging startups and small businesses.
The budget was approved on March 28th. The full budget has not yet been approved but is expected to be approved by April 28th.
they are at a disadvantage
Wes Rogers said he sees KC entrepreneurs competing at an unfair disadvantage, and you only need to look at other nearby communities to see the disparity.
KCMO City Councilman Wes Rogers speaks with entrepreneur Eze Redwood during a KCMO budget hearing on March 27th.Photo courtesy of Darcy Howe, KCRise Foundation.
“We have multiple jurisdictions, and the jurisdictions outside of Kansas City are much easier to do business with than Kansas City,” he said. Rogers, Kansas City, Missouri, Second District Congressman.
“That’s just the reality,” he added. “Kansas City has a population of 500,000 people, and even the larger neighboring cities like Overland Park and Independence have 100,000, 150,000 people. You're adding more processes. You can't change that. ”
Mr. Rogers is a city councilor and chairman of KCMO's small business task force, and has ties to small and medium-sized businesses himself.owned by his family prime chemical solutionsis a cleaning equipment leasing and solvent company founded in the 1950s and employed by two generations of the Rogers family.
Therefore, he knows first-hand the challenges of business and entrepreneurship, he said.
“When it comes to obtaining permits, paying fees and getting inspected, it takes longer and is more complicated in Kansas City than any other city in the greater Kansas City area,” Rogers said. “So small businesses are really at a disadvantage.”
In the face of an increasingly challenging business environment, the city has an opportunity and an obligation to improve processes that not only benefit small businesses, but also taxpayers and the city itself, Rogers added.
What's getting in the way?
Entrepreneur and consultant Eze Redwood, one of the organizers of the small business advocacy group that asked the city for funding, brought to the table a list of specifics he hopes to address over the next year.
“I think it’s hard to do business within the city limits because City Hall doesn’t understand the importance of small businesses to the city,” he said. “[Small business is] Kansas City is what makes people want to visit Kansas City. ”
Redwood said KCMO's investment and banking environment in the city has led to an “ultra-conservative” mindset dominated by dreams of big-ticket mergers and acquisitions, which leads lenders to “clean” balance sheets. It is a mindset that drives us to maintain “first-class commerce,” he added. loan portfolio. ”
“That makes them risk-averse. Even successful entrepreneurs can easily be seen as risks,” he says. “You can have all the cash flow in the world, but if your credit score is 600, it’s very difficult to find funding.”
Redwood's claim is Supported by research from the Ewing Marion Kaufman Foundation. The 2023 report states: “Access to Capital for Entrepreneurs: Removing Barriers” “Businesses in six counties in the Kansas City metropolitan area.” [faced] A severe capital gap estimated at more than $1.4 billion in 2020. ”
However, in the post-COVID-19 high inflation environment, this shortfall is likely to widen further, Redwood said.
Millions more available for tech startups and independent businesses
one of the co-founders of Made by KC Over the past 12 years, the locally-based retailer has expanded across Kansas City and played a key role in rallying calls for more small business support in Kansas City.
tyler endersThe dream started as a pop-up. Currently, Made in KC works with over 250 of her local artists, makers, and small business owners.
Entrepreneurs and their supporters (including Rogers). Sequoia; melissa roberts chapman, a longtime advocate for the entrepreneurial community, currently works as Director of Entrepreneurship and Ecosystems at the Federation of American Scientists (FAS).and Adam Arredondo, Director of Community Engagement at Tactics. Among other things, we are close to securing millions of dollars in additional city funding that could go a long way in alleviating the challenges faced by businesses in KCMO.
Enders said if all goes well in the coming weeks, the city will redirect “4.5% of all revenue generated by small businesses” into further small business support indefinitely.
“We expect this to total over $10 million a year,” he added, offering estimates that Rogers and Redwood also feel are solid bets.
Enders and his advocacy group also want the city to consider it. Recommendations of city jobs — Consulting group consulting on KC's new services Small Business Task Force Enders said the city conducted insightful research on how to improve its processes, requirements and systems.
Related: Starting a business in KCMO is too expensive, says study.Here's how cities can reduce these costs
And while securing funding sources could be a win, he added, it's just the beginning. Supporters are already making plans for possible new sources of funding.
“The funds are [will] We support a wide range of activities, from access to capital to the city's procurement practices, streamlining licensing procedures and reducing fees,” Enders said. “Kansas City is known for its high rate of business start-ups, but it also has the undesirable designation of having a high rate of business closures.”
Enders and his fellow entrepreneurs are currently seeking co-sponsors for a city ordinance that will finalize their efforts.
