Kansas City and KC BizCare held "Small Business Day with the City" during Global Entrepreneurship Week to prepare entrepreneurs for the 2026 World Cup. The City Hall resource fair connected owners with seven city departments for help with licensing, permits, food-truck rules and storefront planning. The event — supported by a $20,000 National League of Cities grant — highlighted the Open Doors Program, which has 200+ applicants and will announce storefront selections in early 2026. KC BizCare plans to make the fair an annual resource for local businesses.
Kansas City Hosts 'Small Business Day' — City Hall Resource Fair Prepares Entrepreneurs for 2026 World Cup
Kansas City and KC BizCare held "Small Business Day with the City" during Global Entrepreneurship Week to prepare entrepreneurs for the 2026 World Cup. The City Hall resource fair connected owners with seven city departments for help with licensing, permits, food-truck rules and storefront planning. The event — supported by a $20,000 National League of Cities grant — highlighted the Open Doors Program, which has 200+ applicants and will announce storefront selections in early 2026. KC BizCare plans to make the fair an annual resource for local businesses.
07:19 AM, 11/19/2025Economy
Kansas City officials and business-support group KC BizCare hosted "Small Business Day with the City" at City Hall during Global Entrepreneurship Week. The one-day resource fair aimed to equip local entrepreneurs with licensing, permitting and operational guidance ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, when the region expects roughly 650,000 visitors.
The event served as a one-stop opportunity for small business owners to meet with seven internal city departments — including Regulated Industries, the health department and city planning — to get direct answers on certificates, food-truck requirements, change-of-use procedures and more.
"We are really trying to empower our small business community right now," said KC BizCare Division Manager Jana Wagner. "This fair is designed so entrepreneurs can get their questions answered and move forward with confidence."
Attendees praised the practical support. Erika Davis, owner of Kingdom Mentality, said staff walked her through required certificates and food-truck standards. Matt Jones, founder of Crease Beast — a company known for crease protectors for sneakers and carried by retailers such as Target and Scheels — described how the fair connected him to resources for small-business loans and business licensing.
Jones said he has sold products in nearly 90 countries and hopes to open a physical Crease Beast storefront in Kansas City before next year’s tournament. He is applying to the city’s Open Doors Program, an initiative to occupy vacant storefronts ahead of the World Cup.
Wagner noted the Open Doors Program has already received more than 200 applications and is still accepting submissions online; the city plans to announce selected businesses for storefronts in early 2026. She added that the National League of Cities provided a $20,000 grant last year to support KC BizCare’s outreach, and Tuesday’s fair was an example of how that funding is being used to connect entrepreneurs with city services.
Organizers emphasized that Small Business Day with the City is not solely about preparing for a single event: KC BizCare plans to host the fair annually as part of ongoing efforts to support entrepreneurship and neighborhood economic recovery.
Context: Recent housing data from Zillow indicates more than 46% of Kansas City homes have lost value, underscoring the economic challenges residents and business owners face as they plan for growth around major events.