The Porter House KC is opening a spot for local entrepreneurs to test and showcase their retail concepts and fail fast.
The idea for the Kansas City retail space at 811 E. 31st St. has been in the works for years, but the entrepreneurial resource organization faced multiple roadblocks, from permitting to finding a contractor willing to do the work. The pandemic also delayed wrapping up renovations.
The project was a complete gut and included adding a new roof, electrical and plumbing, among other upgrades.
Porter House, which owns the two-story building across from Kitty's Cafe, aims to kick off a soft opening at the end of February and a grand opening in March.
The roughly 10,000-square-foot building will accommodate nine retail-focused entrepreneurs, giving them access to short-term leases at a reasonable rate.
“They’re going to be able to come into the space and fail without losing their shirts,” Porter House co-founder Daniel Smith said. “They can fail often and fail fast. We serve a lot of retail-based entrepreneurs that don’t have an opportunity to prove their concept because they’re just doing popups on the weekends and evenings.”
Through Porter House’s new space, the entrepreneurs can now test their concepts and learn from their mistakes. Smith hopes it’s a steppingstone for the entrepreneurs to eventually open a standalone brick-and-mortar store or to realize their retail idea won’t work.
In addition to designated retail booths, the building also will house open workspaces on the second floor as well as small business development classes. Porter House also plans to host a speaker series featuring thought leaders. Some of those events will be literal fireside chats, he said, beside the backyard fire pit.
