Why are existing businesses shut out from KC’s World Cup incentives? | Opinion
Kansas City recently announced a promising $1.4 million initiative to revitalize long-vacant downtown storefronts in anticipation of the 2026 World Cup. The program is offering $25,000 a year in assistance and lease subsidies to attract small business owners, entrepreneurs and creatives to rent new space.
At face value, that sounds like a pretty sweet deal for small business owners, but, as someone who’s been building business in this city for over a decade — without grants, subsidies or generational wealth — I have to ask:
Why now, and why only for new business?
I’ve lived in Kansas City nearly all my life, attended school in the Northland, went to college and came back. My family wasn’t wealthy, and I’ve never experienced what it feels like to have family investment, a large inheritance or a built-in safety net. In 2015, I got let go from a corporate job in Overland Park, and I decided to take the entrepreneurship path. The past decade has been defined by grit, perseverance and an unwavering commitment to building a future on my own terms.
I own and operate a marketing business that helps brands leverage custom automation infrastructure to save money and streamline traditional marketing, digital ads and the content development process. I took those skills and put my work on display through the creation of two other businesses: Motive Studios, a 5,000-square-foot luxury photography and production space in the East Crossroads district, and Unlabeled Studios, one of Kansas City’s top music recording studios, located in Westport. I’ve helped bring national clients such as Nike, Garmin, T.J. Maxx, The Buckle and more build their presence in Kansas City. I’ve created jobs, supported artists and entrepreneurs all while carrying the full weight of rent, overhead and risk.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, I was fortunate to qualify for less than I’d hoped for in Paycheck Protection Program and Economic Injury Disaster Loan funds, which proved just enough to survive. But that money is long gone. What we’re left with now is the economic hangover: rising costs, inflation driven by trillions in printed dollars and no meaningful relief for small business owners who weathered the worst of it.
Now the city wants to hand out cash to fill storefronts, and again, I ask:
What about existing small business owners?
Established entrepreneurs overlooked
I’ve seen the benefits of revitalization. I’m living it today, and I’m not against it by any means. The building my photo studio is in has stood vacant almost longer than it’s been occupied in its 100-plus-year history. Just a decade ago, the East Crossroads district would be unrecognizable compared to today. I started Motive in the West Bottoms’ Hobbs Building, with no air conditioning, and transformed my spaces into booked, profitable and valuable creative hubs for the community.
What I’m against is overlooking the very entrepreneurs who’ve already done the work, spent the money and weathered the ups and downs. We were the proof of concept before the incentives existed, and the individuals who made it work in Kansas City, even when it seemed impossible.
If this new program goes to Instagrammable pop-ups and short-lived retail experiments that vanish after the World Cup, we’ve missed the mark. But, if it can be steered toward entrepreneurs with real skin in the game, those who’ve built our businesses from the ground up and stayed, then maybe it’s something worth looking at.
We don’t need charity. We need recognition. We need access to the same opportunities now being dangled in front of businesses that haven’t put in a single day of work in this city yet. What if even 10% of these funds were reserved for legacy businesses that revitalized blighted neighborhoods before there were grants on the table?
If Kansas City wants to show the world who we are, let’s lead with the people who’ve already invested in its future — not just the ones arriving with a lease and a city incentive.