Thirty-seven businesses in the Kansas City metro area made the 2018 Inc. 5000 list of the fastest-growing companies in the U.S., a slight decrease from the 2017 list of 40 companies. Two area retail companies — Nickel & Suede and Mer-Sea & Co. — made it into the Inc. 500, each growing more than 1000 percent since 2014. Many companies made repeat appearances, include DEG of Overland Park, which was…

A Kansas City coffee roaster has attained a prestigious certification for quality. After six days of rigorous classes, presentations and more than 20 exams, Parisi Artisan Coffee’s Head Roaster Jonathan Rodick received one of the highest industry honors when he was awarded the Q Grader Accreditation from the Coffee Quality Institute last month. Rodick is one of about 4,400 Q Graders worldwide. “I can take what I learned through the…

Central Exchange has announced the winners of its STEMMy Awards, which celebrate women and their achievements in science, technology, engineering, math and medicine. “These women are the inspiration for current and future women in STEMM. They are key ingredients in making Kansas City a thriving community for STEMM,” said Courtney Thomas, CEO of Central Exchange, a leadership development organization. Central Exchange, through its Women in STEMM (WiSTEMM) initiative, aims to…

Pam Newton was running out of space. The Liberty-based designer and “Indiana Jones treasure hunter” of antique furnishings was stockpiling collected items she used in the design of iWerx and other projects at the Northland coworking facility’s storage units. After the completion of the iWerx project, Newton moved her business into her home garage. It quickly became apparent that the garage wasn’t going to work for a maker workshop. “I…

One in four dogs will be impacted by cancer, and cancer is the top cause of death in dogs over the age of two. ELIAS Animal Health, an Olathe-based bioscience company, is hoping its new immunotherapeutic product can help in the fight against cancer in companion animals. Preliminary results are encouraging. At the 2018 American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine Forum in June, ELIAS said that its new ELIAS autologous…