Category: Business

Vendor fair to be Tuesday

The Unified Government of Wyandotte County and Kansas City, Kansas, along with the WyCo Vendor and Resource Fair Committee and Pay-It will hold its first Vendor Small Business Resource Fair on Tuesday, Oct. 18.

“Building Connections in 2022,” a free resource fair, will take place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday at Memorial Hall, 600 N. 7th St. Trafficway, Kansas City, Kansas.

Vendors and small businesses will glean valuable information on working with government and corporate organizations, as well as gaining resources on upcoming opportunities and programs for small businesses.

Registered businesses will be able to bring their products, showcase their services and meet with government agencies and regional corporations to learn more about potential contract opportunities.

In support of local small businesses, a sponsorship through Pay-It has secured the showcasing of three on-site food truck businesses and event entertainment with a local disc jockey and production company.

Two new shops open at Legends Outlets

Two new stores, Aerie and Spencer’s, have opened at the Legends Outlets at I-70 and I-435 in Kansas City, Kansas.

Aerie, a brand owned by American Eagle Outfitters, promotes body positivity, empowerment and confidence with the #AerieREAL campaign. Aerie includes diverse models of all sizes, shapes, disabilities and skin colors in their campaigns, and does not retouch or alter photos.

The new intimate apparel and lifestyle store is located at 1837 Village West Parkway, Suite B-121. It carries size-inclusive bras, underwear, sleepwear, swimwear and activewear, with its exclusive Aerie line. For more information, see ae.com.

Spencer’s carries the latest pop culture styles, unique gifts and novelties.

Known for its gag items and licensed merchandise from movies, TV and music, the gift shop is located at 1803 Village West Parkway, Suite M-105. For more information, see www.spencersonline.com.

KCKCC to hold open house Thursday on automation engineering program

Students can become an advanced manufacturing technician with little or no cost in two years through Kansas City Kansas Community College’s Automation Engineer Technology program.

More information about this program is available at an upcoming open house from 5 to 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 6, at the Dr. Thomas R. Burke Technical Education Center, 6565 State Ave. in Kansas City, Kansas. The event is free and open to the public.

Wyandotte County has more than 5,500 skilled jobs available with an average pay of $19.70 per hour. KCKCC is helping fill this gap with the AET program. Through its partnership with FAME (Federation of Advanced Manufacturing Education), students not only can be prepared for an in-demand career but finish debt free, according to a KCKCC spokesman.

KCKCC students will spend two days a week at the college and the other three days as a paid intern at a local manufacturer. This is an “earn while you learn” program. The open house will give those interested an opportunity to learn about the program, visit the new AET lab and meet the first cohort of AET FAME students.

First developed by Toyota, the FAME program serves to solve a local skills trade shortage while providing a pathway for people to earn a technical associate of science degree debt-free. Currently, there are 32 FAME chapters in 14 states, and participation continues to grow. Local manufacturing company leaders – Amsted Rail, Best Harvest Bakeries, Brill, Inc., Catalent, Empire Candle, INX International INK Co., TT Electronics and CH Guenther & Son dba Williams Foods, established the first FAME chapter in Kansas – the Kansas City FAME chapter. Supported by the Kansas Manufacturing Extension Partnership, Kansas Manufacturing Solutions, Wyandotte Economic Development Council and Workforce Partnership, the Kansas City FAME chapter expects to grow its membership base of manufacturing companies.

For more information on applying for the FAME internship program, visit the FAME KC website. For more information on the AMT program at KCKCC visit the website or contact Rich Piper.

– Story from Kelly Rogge, KCKCC public information manager