Hidden Gems: Local Businesses & Creatives You Should Know

Every day we have a choice. We can support an up and coming podcaster, try a new family-run restaurant, join a boutique gym started by a local fitness champ or we could keep giving away our money to the handful of giants who already control so much of our commerce. Our daily decisions impact the kind world we live in; if we want a world where small businesses are growing and artists and creatives are thriving then we should support them with our time, money and attention. We’re proud to highlight inspiring creatives and entrepreneurs each week in Hidden Gems series. Check out some of our latest local gem features below.

Emily Martin And Kayla Brooner

As a pair of young, working adults, finding the time to fully invest in a side project has been a challenge. Between parenting on Emily’s side and the occasional trip to Europe on Kayla’s, we have a lot to work around. Aside from that, neither of us are exactly tech wizards. In two years, we’ve blown through: three microphones, one soundboard, a handful of editing programs, and our fair share of brain cells. Luckily, we’re both of the opinion that nothing worth doing is easy! And so, we push through the struggles of slowly building our own platform with the sunny expectation that others will soon join us on our adventure. Read More>>

Heathyr Shaw

Organically, my business (now Meadowlark & Co) started and evolved from doing wedding calligraphy, invitations, and custom watercolor commissions, to now teaching watercolor workshops, selling art prints, and most importantly, creating content and products that help women (particularly moms!) put their hands to the dreams that are in their hearts. Right now, I’m most passionate about getting my Motherhood Journal, a reflective journal for pregnant and postpartum women, into the hands of as many new moms as possible. Read More>>

Thomson Ticum-archila

We faced many challenges, such as the decision to formalize the business with my brother and navigating all the complexities that came with it. In the same way, creating budgets to keep the company afloat and establishing our brand to attract potential clients were challenges that we have had to overcome many times. My brother and I have full-time jobs, so finding the time to grow the business has been, and continues to be, an ongoing challenge. Read More>>

Matthew Reed Williams

Then, upon graduation, I spent a few months backpacking solo in Europe which stoked the fires of my imagination more. That was nearly fifteen years ago, but it’s taken all of that time of constant writing–including many drafts and unfinished projects–to release my debut novel. I look back on all of that time, though, with a better appreciation for and understanding of the writing process, and I’m hard at work to release my next books soon. Read More>>

Jonathan De La Torre

When I was 6 or 7 years old, I remember my uncle playing in a band and hearing all the different sounds, and at about 9 or 10 years old one of my cousins from my dad’s side gave me my first electric guitar. I was really into Queen when I was a young teen. My mother got me a karaoke machine around that time and somehow I figured out how to plug in my guitar and record my guitar solos over a Queen CD onto a cassette tape. I think that’s when I started to take an interest in music. I wanted to be a rockstar… at that time. Read More>>

Kayla Kelly

They say to make content you enjoy watching and one of my favorite things to see on instagram are funny, relatable reels, so that is the content I am trying to make. My Booksta is not aesthetically pleasing, I don’t have a fancy home library, I don’t own any physical books (I read on my Kindle and listen to audiobooks) and I’m honestly just winging it, but I hope to bring some laughs and fun conversations to the Bookstagram community. It has been so incredible connecting with other readers around the world! Read More>>

Dan Ramm

On a drive back from the golf course in early 2000, I mentioned to Joe that I was selling my company. I had spent most of my life working very hard at something I didn’t love, and I had decided that the time had come for me to reinvent myself. He was curious about my ambitions and, although at the time I didn’t know what I wanted to do, I knew I wanted something different. I explained that the sale of my company included a proviso that I stay on with the new owners for one year as an advisor and to help the transition. Read More>>

Megan Wheeler

They purchased the whole shopping strip, and had plans to demolish the center to create a parking lot for there other project next to us. From the get go there was very little communication, poor intimidation tactics, and lots of confusion for all of us tenants. Ellen’s had just signed a 5 year lease and rumors were going around that we all had to be out of the building by October, and then that the city had condemned the building, none of which there was any legal record of. After many attempts trying to simply communicate with the new landlord, Ellen’s was one of the lucky ones to finally settle on a payout for us to leave, though it was way below a low ball of an offer. Read More>>

Jj Fisher

Very tough road. My parents ended getting divorced midway through our journey thus far. We have been out of money many times but always found a way to push forward and create opportunities. Things are still very hard for us every day but we are dedicated to this to help society and give our family a great future. Read More>>

Abby Arnold

Freelancing has been anything but a smooth road, and I think anyone who takes this path can relate. The biggest challenge is the lack of guaranteed income; it’s a constant hustle to find new projects, and you’re responsible for managing everything from taxes to health insurance on your own. I feel incredibly fortunate to have had my husband’s support. He’s encouraged me to take this leap and reassured me that if things don’t work out, we’ll still be okay. I’m lucky that once I fully committed to this career, it took off in ways I couldn’t have imagined. Read More>>

Marckson François

At a time where sports were my main source of relief, photography slowly started to give me that same feeling inside. At that time, I really just enjoyed the process of taking pictures in general, but never did I actually put real thoughts into being in front of the camera. Until one day, a friend of mine took a picture of me on the tennis courts at Oak Park High School. I specifically asked them to take the picture from behind a fence because I wanted to play around with the camera and just see what it would look like. Read More>>

Liz Concannon

I graduated from Missouri State University in Dec 2023 with a major in graphic design and a minor in photography. After graduating I realized I want to pursue photography more than graphic design and that was really solidified when I started photographing live music events! Read More>>

Grace Greenlee

So when I was gifted a camera for my birthday in 2020 I made sure to the make the most out of it. From there, my passion for creativity blossomed through photography. Once I started my journey with photography I found another passion. Making people feel confident about themselves. How just complimenting them during a shoot and showing them how they look from others perspective can change their confidence in themselves so quickly. Read More>>

Bella Fernandez

I live a blessed & beautiful life but it can be a struggle sometimes. One of the struggles being that since I am freelance, not only am I the model, but I am also my manager, promoter, social media worker and every other piece involved. What I am most passionate about doing is being on a photo shoot and creating with my body and bringing the vision to life, and the admin work that comes before and after and sometimes be very draining. That is the kind of work that any small business owner has to go through though. Read More>>

Larissa Olczak

I’ve always had a fascination with health, especially when it comes to nutrition. In today’s world, it can feel really tough to navigate, and I’ve seen so many people grappling with issues like hormone imbalances and metabolic health challenges. My passion is helping folks regain control of their metabolic health, which essentially means how well our bodies turn food into energy and manage important functions like blood sugar, cholesterol, and weight. This is crucial because our metabolic health affects everything from our energy levels to our mood and overall well-being. Read More>>

Sarah Siegel

I soon found I had a passion for the art and for people. My first few jobs were just to see where I fit into this new world of hair. I was a salon in the Columbia mall, when my former instructor from hair school asked me to come work for her at the new Ulta beauty in town. I said yes and found myself actually beginning to build up my career. Then I fell in love with a man from Kansas City, and we married in 2013. I was able to transfer to another Ulta store and built my skill, clientele and friendships there. Read More>>

Lindsey Tuinstra, Caitlyn Davis

When we first started, it was really hard to find places to play as young musicians. As we’ve grown, it’s been a struggle to find time to pursue music while also juggling school and jobs. Recently, our lead vocalist Bella finished college and moved away from Kansas City, so we have been redefining our sound. Read More>>

Heather Jones

I have always had a passion for music as long as I can remember. I come from a long line of musicians and vocalists. I feel that music is in my blood. I first started to pursue my music journey by creating my own songs at the age of 15, when I was a sophomore in high school. Music for me started as an emotional outlet. That still rings true to this day at 25 years old. Read More>>

Desiree Warren

After growing up in Ottawa, Kansas, I studied Sculpture and Art History at KU. I took several ceramics classes, but it was mainly form over function, so I didn’t learn all the technical aspects of clay and glaze, just how to stick stuff together and keep it from exploding in the kiln. After graduation I worked for a yard art fabricator with a store front and learned about wholesale and retail, craft shows, and that I didn’t love having a boss. Read More>>

Elle Le

Growing up in Vietnam, boba was a part of my life, and I always dreamed of opening my own shop to share my love for refreshing teas and milk teas. One day, I decided to make that dream a reality. On April 29th, 2022, I signed the contract and started construction, and after 6 months of hard work, my boba shop was born in November 22nd, 2022. Read More>>

Thiago Pereira Dennis

At first, it was just about food, but as my following grew, so did my content. I started to branch out into lifestyle, travel, and hospitality. I’ve had the chance to work with amazing brands, cover events like Lollapalooza Brazil, and collaborate with airlines, hotels, and restaurants. It’s been a wild ride, one that’s given me opportunities to experience everything from Michelin-starred dining to hidden gems, and even to build a presence across different platforms like CosmopoliTips.com, Instagram and TikTok. Read More>>

Ayana Whitaker

I also reached out to local clothing lines (Snow & Palms, Noble Illuminators, Designs by Eleishia) to do photoshoots with them as well. In 2022, I tried out for Omaha fashion Week for the first time and was chosen to walk for Hannah Caroline Couture wedding line. Since then, I have done many photoshoots, advertisements, live modeling, and been in many shows in Omaha, Los Angeles, NewYork, Denver, and Kansas City. My goal is to inspire moms and curve women to exude confidence. They are needed within these spaces. You can do anything you put your mind to with hard work, consistency, and dedication. Read More>>

Mandy Klentz

I have a simple system for each meal of the day and it helps me grocery shop for about $5,000 less each year than the average American family (according to the USDA.) I share most of my recipes on my Instagram platform @plandy.mandy and in January 2024 a viral video made my account take off. I now have a platform with over half a million followers where I share budget recipes daily and info on my meal plans that will help my followers save time and money. Read More>>

Madelyn Zavala

Being the son of my grandpa, he himself is innately creative. As we grew up and he started playing drums in bands I always wanted to tag along with him so I became immersed in the creative realm of music. I was immediately attracted to music. I was already getting into acoustic guitar with my grandpa at a young age and once my uncle exposed me to the hardcore scene in the early 2000s, there was no turning back. I became obsessed with music and that is where i started to discover self expression. Read More>>

Paige Clubb

During all of that, I fell in love with the nutrition side of things and how we can heal our bodies without doctors and without taking medications. I wanted to dive deeper and learn more and continue to change my body physically, so I eventually started working with a coach and saw amazing improvements and learned more about deeper health. During my time with my coach, I fell in love with the sport of bodybuilding and hormone/gut health. I felt a calling to help others heal themselves and gain the confidence I had found. Read More>>

Steven & Hannah Musso

Both of us grew up singing in church, went to school for music and lead worship at our churches from a young age. We got married in 2021 and sensed The Lord leading us to begin pioneering ministry together as husband and wife. We began traveling and doing events locally and nationally, and released our first album titled “The Time Is Now” in March of this year. We serve on the worship team at our home church, which Steven helped plant with our Pastors 9 years ago, and have a little one on the way this November! Read More>>

Darian Dozier

Around that time, the pandemic struck and I was stuck at home with nothing to do. During that time, I read the book, You Are a Badass by Jen Sincero where she encouraged me to just go after it. I took the next few months to build my site and start discussing my journey to medicine. My goal was to be the mentor that I didn’t have for someone else. Over the next four years, my blog and my social media presence have grown and I have created a wonderful community. Read More>>