Nell Hill’s, the home décor and furnishings store at 4101 N. Mulberry Dr., is now under new ownership. Its founder and owner for 37 years, Mary Carol Garrity, announced in a company blog post that the transition marks the end of “one of the most rewarding chapters of my life.” Garrity sold the business to Kansas City couple Brandon and Katie Laughridge. To assist with transition, Garrity plans to stay on…

After seven years in the West Bottoms, family-owned home décor and furnishings store RE (previously known as Restoration Emporium) will close its original store location the third week of January. A new location in the Crossroads Arts District opened in December at 1717 Washington St. Founded in 2011, RE was one of the pioneering businesses in the West Bottoms district. The West Bottoms location at 1300 Liberty St. will hold…

Small business owners Kevin Oldham and Tim Denker have recently acquired the majority of The Smoothie Shop & Supplements franchise system. The company has been a part of Kansas City for the past eight years and currently features eight locations, including one at Hy-Vee Arena in Kansas City’s West Bottoms. The pair is planning “aggressive expansion” in the Midwest going forward. “We see The Smoothie Shop & Supplements as a strong…

This week the U.S. Small Business Administration awarded two Kansas Small Business Development Center instructors with its “Boots to Business Instructor of the Year” honor. The University of Kansas’ SBDC Director Will Katz of Lawrence was recognized as one of five 2018 award-winners, while Washburn University business adviser Laurie Pieper of Manhattan was named as one of five runner-ups. “I consider it an honor and a pleasure to work with…

Eight Platte County companies were awarded Business Excellence awards for job creation and/or significant expansion and investment projects at the Platte County Economic Development Council’s 28th Annual Business Excellence Luncheon on Dec. 7. These companies contributed more than $176 million in private investment, filled more than 1.5 million square feet of space and created over 800 jobs with potential for another 1,000 jobs at full capacity. “This annual event always…