Important note before we get to the meat and potatoes of this week’s Venture Friday: we are once again going off-site this Friday to the Lenexa Conference Center. Also, doors open at 5 p.m. instead of 4 p.m. So DO NOT show up to Red Nova Labs on Friday unless you’re a loner and want to hang out in our parking lot for fun. (See directions and map to Lenexa Conference Center at the end of this email.)

Now, to the fun stuff... Fresh off One Week KC, do you smell the entrepreneuring in the air? For those unfamiliar with the scent, I believe it's a mix of vodka and cinnamon. Anyway, if One Week KC taught us anything, it’s that making Kansas City an entrepreneurial city is a team effort. In that spirit, we want to be the anti-Kobe Bryant. This Friday we are sharing the ball and co-hosting Venture Friday with the Enterprise Center of Johnson County (ECJC).

We are quite fond of the folks over at ECJC. In fact, several of our founders worked on another project at ECJC that in a roundabout way led to the formation of Red Nova Labs. So thanks to ECJC, I eat macaroni instead of ramen, have a 401K and own a couple leather-bound books.

What is ECJC? The premise is to help KC entrepreneurs turn ideas into profitable businesses through an incubator program at their headquarters in Lenexa. On Friday, two of the success stories, EyeVerify and Innovadex, will show off their products and speak about the process of going through the ECJC program.

EyeVerify (http://eyeverify.com), a current incubator tenant, enables mobile users to authorize transactions and access information in a manner that is secure, scalable, and convenient. Innovadex (http://www.innovadex.com/) is a search engine in the Life Science, Chemical, Food and Beverage industries. The company is a graduate of ECJC and President Jim Dodd is the current chairman of the ECJC Board of Directors.

Come learn more about ECJC, these two great KC companies, and as always, eat, drink and mingle with fellow entrepreneurial-loving folk. Doors open at 5 p.m.; we are legally obligated to kick everyone out at 7 p.m.

To get to the Lenexa Conference Center from the north, take I-35 S to I-435 W. Take the first exit onto Lackman Rd. Turn right onto W. 101st Terrace. Turn right onto Sante Fe Trail Dr. Drive 1.4 miles and turn right onto Lackman Rd. The Lenexa Conference Center will be on your left.

From the south, take I-35 N to 119th St. Turn right on 119th St. Turn left onto S. Strang Line Rd. Turn left onto 111th St. /College Blvd. Turn left onto Lackman Rd. and the Lenexa Conference Center will be on your left.

And if that confused you, here’s a map of the Lenexa Conference Center.

Thanks,

C.J.