In honor of #NationalPetMonth, we’re featuring some of our regional, animal or pet-focused businesses in the Greater Manhattan area. Get to know these local businesses that bring humans and animals together for a variety of unique purposes. In this interview, Spark’s team talked with Emily Oravetz, K-State student entrepreneur and co-owner of mobile pet grooming business, Bravepawzzz, to tell us more about her business.
Read MoreJohn and Jina Kugler always had dogs and enjoyed hunting for sport, but it wasn’t until John worked with canine bed bug detection as a facilities manager that he and Jina saw a new opportunity for dogs who love to hunt. They started small but quickly proved the unique idea of dogs hunting bed bugs was an effective one. In November 2020, Bug Hounds won the Non-tech business award in the StartUp MHK Pitch Competition in November 2020. They also won the hearts of their customers and community with the People’s Choice Award, earning them a combined $13,000 for their business.
Read MoreWhen he returned to Manhattan, he started freelancing in PR, starting out with consulting on the side to stay active in the field he loved. His consulting work didn’t even have a name since he intended to keep his workload small, but the growing demand from his clients compelled him to expand his team. Eventually he was advised to name his agency, and in an effort to keep it simple, he decided on Hayter Industries.
Being back in Manhattan is opening new opportunities for Ryan to share his expertise in PR and communications for global brands with small businesses and startups, both in the region and across Kansas. He is currently working with Wichita-based Yoder Smokers, a small but established premium grill company with an extraordinary, high-end product. Despite their quality, the company message has spread more through word of mouth than earned media. Ryan hopes to change that.
Read MoreOn Thursday, April 27th, Spark presented the Spring 2023 class of Flint Hills Business Launch. After an intense 8-week, virtual course, 14 entrepreneurs representing 11 businesses received certificates of graduation, and nine participated in a pitch competition with a $1000 award.
Flint Hills Business Launch, an 8-week immersive course designed for entrepreneurs who are pre-launch or in their first three years of operations, kicked off this March with 14 participating entrepreneurs from Pottawatomie, Riley and Geary counties in Kansas. In addition to Spark, program sponsors for the course include NetWork Kansas, Manhattan Area Chamber of Commerce, and Pottawatomie County Economic Development Corporation (PCEDC), with representatives from NetWork Kansas and PCEDC in attendance.
Read MoreJoshua O’Crowley remembers the time he realized that blacksmithing was more than a craft. After returning home from his second deployment, Joshua took up knife making, an informal practice he started in his garage as a way to decompress and create. But eventually, Joshua noticed that the craft was also helping him heal from PTSD symptoms following his last tour of duty. “It took about a year or so before we realized that this was what was helping – going in the shop and creating something,” Joshua says. “And I felt better doing it.”
As he honed his craft, he began to share it with others, particularly veterans and first responders who were dealing with similar challenges. One particular encounter with a Vietnam veteran who came to make a knife with Joshua left a lasting impression. Over the course of a month, the two shared stories and built a bond that had a profound impact on both of them. The experience inspired Joshua and Robyn to pay it forward and create a space where others could find the same sense of healing and connection.
Read MoreSince starting her pie business in 2019, entrepreneur and self-labeled “pie lady”, Tiffany Oppelt has made significant strides in her entrepreneurial journey with the growth of her business, TheraPie, with a recent opening of a retail location in downtown Manhattan. The storefront is an addition to the two other collaborative retail locations in which her pies are sold: Brothers Coffee and Galaxy Girl Coffee, located at Manhattan Town Center mall.
For the past three years, TheraPie gained rapid traction in the Manhattan community, becoming a unique, local favorite for desserts. “We were to the point where people were Googling ‘best dessert in Manhattan’ and our home bakery address would show up. They would knock on the door and be very confused since it was our home.” says Tiffany.
Read MorePablo Diaz Carballo saw his neighbor’s beautiful flowers destroyed by a late snowfall last spring. Seeing the flowers destroyed felt symbolic to Diaz.
“The metaphor came to my mind about the beauty and fragility of the flowers like the beauty and fragility of freedom,” he said.
Diaz, who lived most of his life in Venezuela but now lives in St. Marys, spent years trying to upend the system in his home country through art and education. Some of Diaz’s recent work is on display at Manhattan Arts Center. He said creative minds working together can change the world.
Read MoreLooking ahead, Jonna has many aspirations for The Junction City Workshop. She would like to add more space, host more trainings and meetups, and support working parents with a family-friendly workspace. As a working mom, Jonna understands the hardships that working parents face when caring for their children. “My target is working parents because eventually I want to have a space for the kids to do arts and crafts or have a quiet time, and even partner up with one of the local daycare providers so it would be part of the membership.”
Jonna sees shared workspace as solving two problems, not just affordability but also community. “When I published my first children’s book two years ago, it was such a struggle because I didn’t have any community or any place to test it out. And I feel like I want to provide that to other parents or military spouses that might be feeling alone or like they don’t belong.”
Read MoreFlint Hills Business Launch, an 8-week immersive course designed for entrepreneurs in their first three years of operations, kicked off this March with 15 participating businesses from Pottawatomie, Riley and Geary counties in Kansas. The course curriculum is built on the nationally-recognized, Kauffman FastTrac, with additional support for participating business owners in the form of small group discussions, expert Q&A, mentor matching and additional visibility and preparation for capital for their business during and after the course.
In this series, get to know the participating entrepreneurs committing to start and grow their businesses on strong foundations in the Spring 2023 Flint Hills Business Launch course.
Read MoreLast week on March 9th, student entrepreneurs from Manhattan High School participated in the annual Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge, a tradeshow and pitch competition sponsored by Manhattan Area Chamber of Commerce, NetWork Kansas, K-State Extension, Riley County, Rockin' K’s and Spark.
The event featured business tradeshow booths where community members and professionals had the opportunity to meet student entrepreneurs, hear a receive a pitch of their business and ask questions about their product or service. While many of the students were still in the concept phase with their business, some had already launched a product or service and were operating.
Read MoreOn Tuesday, March 4, Kansas State University E-Club (Entrepreneurship Club) hosted the K-State Business Showcase on campus at the Business Building Atrium, where student-owned businesses were on display marketing their business to those who participated in the event.
Participants received $250 for attending and participating in the event for the chance to receive the People’s Choice Award. Event attendees were provided with a token to award to their favorite business at the event. At the end of the day, the business with the most tokens won the People’s Choice Award and an extra $250.
Mentoria discovered doula work in a roundabout way, after suffering from postpartum depression after the labor and delivery of her daughter, who is now five years old. On her healing journey, she searched for specific stories and representation from other Black women who had experienced and healed from postpartum mental health disorders. The stories she found were only mildly relatable, and Mentoria observed there was a massive gap in not only support and representation for Black mothers. Mentoria’s own path toward healing took multiple turns before she really found her way, and she hopes to be an educating advocate who can help mothers, especially Black women, avoid her painful journey.
Despite experiencing prolonged, severe postpartum depression symptoms after the birth of her daughter, she was reluctant to seek treatment beyond medications. But it was the representation of other Black women in the medical field that led her to take the steps she truly needed to take.
Read MoreWhen Jessica Andrews, owner of J’s Makeup Artistry, reached out to Hy-Vee in October 2022 to ask them about carrying her skincare and makeup line in their store, she got an answer she didn’t expect. “I went to Hy-Vee here in Manhattan, and I said, ‘What do I need to get into your store?’ I told them what I did, along with my credentials,” she explained. “And they said, ‘Jessica, we would love to have you in our store.’ I said, ‘Really, that easy?’ and they said, ‘It is that easy’,” she recalls.
For Jessica, an entrepreneur who was used to working hard for her dreams, it had not always been easy. Growing up, Jessica spent a lot of time with her father, going to the gym and doing other activities with him. Although she thought of herself as a ‘tomboy’, she also had an early interest in the beauty industry. “I always wanted to be a model, but then I ended up doing makeup instead,” says Jessica.
Read MoreIt was at home with family in Kansas City, Kansas, that JahVelle Rhone, musician, content creator and entrepreneur, first discovered his love of music. “It all started in the basement of my childhood home, where my dad used to play the guitar after church, and my brothers and I would dance for hours upon hours to his music.“ JahVelle recalls, “I knew that I would love nothing more than to be a musician because that day, the joy we felt in that basement and listening to the sounds of the soulful music had to be supernatural.”
Known to over 1 Million followers on social media as JRSaxophonic, the intersection of JahVelle’s talent as a saxophone player and digital media creator has taken him around the country and through doors he only dreamed were possible a few short years ago. Recognized for his soulful, smooth sounds across multiple social media platforms, JahVelle insists, “My staple would be to inspire, to bring joy and cultivate a soulful wave in music through love, positively, and empowerment.” He adds, “And my only rule is to keep it smooth.”.
Read MoreTo meet the critical need for business education and enhance the long-term success of emerging businesses in the Greater Manhattan region, Spark, a Manhattan, Kansas-based entrepreneur support organization, will host its fifth entrepreneur education cohort starting March 2023. The course, titled Flint Hills Business Launch, is an 8-week, immersive experience designed to provide foundational business education to entrepreneurs who are pre-launch through the first three years of operations.
The online course is hosted for two hours, one week night a week for eight weeks, and includes Q&A with regional service providers, small group breakout discussion and teaching on business fundamentals, as well as in person events, mentorship and peer support. Class size is kept small to optimize engagement and facilitator to student ratios.
Read MoreThe Sunderland Foundation Innovation Lab at Kansas State University’s Hale Library is creating amazing opportunities for K-Staters and community members alike. The state-of-the-art technology-focused facility is located on the first and second floors of the library and is available for anyone to stop by and use.
“From our artificial intelligence studio to our collaboration spaces, we invite individuals from all walks of life to come use our resources,” Jeff Sheldon, associate director of the lab, said. “Not only does the innovation lab provide teaching, learning and research opportunities for K-Staters, it also allows entrepreneurs and community members to dive headfirst into technology they may not otherwise have access to.”
Read MoreOutdoor recreation has catapulted in participation numbers during the pandemic era as record numbers of Americans have flocked to the outdoors for their mental and physical health. Local entrepreneurs Jessica Voos Peterson and Brian Peterson are determined to get more people to experience a night under the stars by bringing luxury camping, known as glamping, to their customers’ homes.
The newly married couple who reside in Wamego and work in Manhattan, launched Backyard Backcountry, a service where the Petersons set up an entire backyard campground on their customers’ properties. The event service includes a spacious circular canvas tent, memory foam beds, tables, chairs, Solo bonfire stoves, movie projectors, s’mores kits and a list of luxuries to make an evening with friends and family memorable and comfortable.
Read MoreGalaxy Girl Coffee began as an online, micro-batch, coffee roasting service but recently expanded into a retail location at Manhattan Town Center. “I am so glad that circumstances caused me to open up my shop instead of being purely mobile,” says owner, Christine Ball. Since opening her store in Manhattan Town Center, she has been able to expand not only her business but her perspective. “Business is about relationships, and I have met some amazing people since getting to my location in Manhattan Town Center,” says Christine.
Read MoreMatt Goss, owner of Syndicate Tattoo, has been a tattooist for the last 17 years of his life. But it was a career path he did not see coming. Early in his career, he served in the Army and worked as a receptionist at a tattoo shop on the weekends. After 10 years at the shop, Matt finished his second Associates degree in auto mechanics and began searching for what was next. Upon sharing his plans to leave the tattoo shop, the owners offered him an opportunity. “The shop asked me if I ever thought about tattooing, and of course I had.” Matt committed to learning the craft and worked with the shop as a tattooist for the next five years. “Eventually, I branched out, and we opened Syndicate downtown 12 years ago.”
Read MoreThe all-natural, fresh-squeezed lemonade made by 11-year-old Tre Glasper and his family in a Manhattan commercial kitchen is making its way to Kansas City thanks to a tart partnership with one of the Midwest’s leading grocery chains.
Tre typically sells about 100 bottles of Tre’s Squeeze — an amount that takes two to three hours to produce and package — a week in Manhattan, he said. The lemonade often sells out quickly at the Manhattan Hy-Vee, where the boy’s product has been stocked and sold for the past year, added his mother, Sheila Ellis-Glasper. After restocking, 100 to 150 bottles often sell out over the course of a weekend.
Read More
