Last week, three female business owners and social entrepreneurs emerged champions of the HERImpact Kansas City Pitch Competition.
The third-annual Shark Tank-style event, sponsored by the Ford Motor Company Fund and 1863 Ventures, brought six finalists to the stage to compete for $50,000 in unrestricted business grants. The participants represented just a handful of the 42 companies that completed the application for this year's contest.
Nikkie Affholter, founder and owner of Tirza Design, took home first place and $27,500. Founded in 2020, the clothing and accessories retailer provides job opportunities to help women get out of adverse situations, such as poverty, human trafficking, and domestic and drug abuse.
Tirza Design, which has eight employees, recently opened a brick-and-mortar location at 321 Nichols Road on The Country Club Plaza.
Coming in second and receiving $12,500 was Kristan Chamberlain and KC Can Compost, a nonprofit enterprise with seven employees and 14 interns focused on improving the environmental and social landscapes of Kansas City through systemic organic waste diversion and green job training for those facing barriers to employment.
Chamberlain, who is CEO and co-founder of KC Can Compost, also was a participant in LaunchKC's inaugural Social Venture Studio accelerator. Founded in 2019, the organization's other co-founder is COO Heather Nevarez.
The competition's $5,000 Audience Choice prize was awarded to Verónica Alvidrez, CEO and founder of paraMi.
ParaMi, which in Spanish means "for me," is an apparel and home goods brand that brings representation to Latinas in the Midwest. Founded in 2021, the Kansas City, Kansas-based e-commerce startup has four employees.
Five criteria were used to select the pitch contest winners:
- solve a community problem
- have a sustainable business model
- feature a product or service differentiated with a clear value proposition
- have a capable founding team with experience to lead
- provide evidence of market traction
The competition's three-judge panel consisted of Yisel Cabrera, senior manager of economic mobility for the Ford fund; Davin Gordon, program officer at the Hall Family Foundation; and Melissa Bradley, managing partner and founder of 1863 Ventures.
In addition to the grants, 1863 Ventures provides business development support to HERImpact winners to help them scale their businesses. The Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit provides culturally competent accelerator programs, non-dilutive financing and mentorship to Black, Latino and other historically underestimated entrepreneurs.
Ford Motor Company Fund has invested $300,000 in women-owned social enterprises through the HERImpact program, according to a spokesman for 1863 Ventures.
HERImpact has invested in 19 women-owned social enterprises in Miami, D.C. and Kansas City. Seven of those businesses have come from the Kansas City area.
The previous local grant winners are:
- Conner Hazelrigg, founder of Sollular Connections LLC (dba 1773 Innovation Co.), a Liberty-based company developing portable solar-powered charging system for developing nations ($25,000)
- Anita Koul Kufukaa, founder of Kufukaa, an Olathe-based sustainable and eco-friendly clothing and homeware brand supporting and empowering refugee immigrant artists and the local community ($10,000)
- Jill Bertelsen, CEO and founder of Bertelsen Education, a Boise, Idaho-based creator of online professional development opportunities for child care providers which was formerly based in Riverside ($5,000)
- Lisa Ragan, founder and owner of Safely Delicious, an Overland Park-based company that manufactures, packages and sells one-of-a-kind allergy friendly food products ($5,000)
