Kansas City-based Acendas Travel has expanded its operations with the acquisition of Gwin’s Travel, which has offices in the St. Louis suburbs of Kirkwood, Mo., and Bethalto, Ill. The deal is effective immediately. While current Acendas Travel staff will assume various responsibilities after the purchase, Gwin’s will retain its name and remain as a stand-alone agency. Previous owner Rhonda Kaminski will retire, while the existing staff will stay on board….

With a new office, a growing list of service lines and new executive leadership, the momentum at Veracity Consulting hasn’t slowed since being named a Top 10 Small Business earlier this year. “This has been a crazy – and also exhilarating – year for all of us,” said founder and CEO Angela Hurt. “Keeping up with the company’s growth has been challenging, but it’s definitely a good problem to have.”…

This week, I start work as a staff reporter for Thinking Bigger Inc., where I’ll provide editorial features and additional copy on everything small business in the Kansas City area. I was born and raised here in Kansas City, but my experience also includes my work as a reporter and newspaper editor in Omaha, Neb. Over the last two years, I pursued my master’s in English at Creighton University, and…

Mid-Continent Public Library’s Square One Small Business Services will tackle some of the challenging issues of owning a business at an upcoming seminar. Small Business Bootcamp will include talks on business growth, funding and using social media, as well as networking opportunities with local resource organizations that help small businesses. The upcoming event will be from 8:30 a.m. to noon Nov. 30 at the Missouri Innovation Campus, 1101 NW Innovation…

The first first female mayor of Kansas City, Mo., was honored as Kansas Citian of the Year at the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce annual dinner Nov. 20. Kay Barnes, who served two terms as mayor from 1999 to 2007, oversaw the era of Downtown’s revitalization, including the opening of the new H&R Block World Headquarters, Sprint Center and the Power & Light District. Other improvements that occurred during…