Josh Cramer, CEO of FullStack, at the company’s launch party in Kansas City
A new full-service startup development company has expanded into Kansas City. Iowa-based Fullstack celebrated the move at its launch party Wednesday evening at Snow & Co. in the Crossroads district. The event hosted entrepreneurs from the Kansas City Startup Village and the Sprint Accelerator.
Josh Cramer is the CEO of FullStack (formerly known as Cramer Development). He started the recently rebranded company in 2000 after being laid off from his mechanical engineering job.
“I basically had no money,” Cramer said. “I had my first kid due in four weeks and was two weeks away from signing my first mortgage when I got laid off. For some reason I thought this was a good time to start a new company.”
That hunch proved fruitful. His company survived and grew over the next 14 years. Cramer says that this launch party serves multiple purposes.
“We want to let people know that we are FullStack, and we are here in Kansas City now. We have a formal presence here… We also want to let people know that we are here to help the Kansas City community.”
The expansion to Kansas City marks a new strategic decision says Jonny Kot, chief sales officer for FullStack.
“Tonight’s a starting point for the foundation that we are looking to build in Kansas City,” Kot said. “We are looking to engage with the community, build the community and find out where the gaps are that we can help to fill as we grow with the community.”
Kot was quick to point out the effect that Cramer and his crew had in Iowa. He said Cramer “has done an incredible job with building the company with roots in helping startups in every stage and has grown Iowa City and Iowa as a whole. We are looking to do the same here.”
Kot, who moved to Kansas City from New York, explained the attraction that Kansas City has for startups.
“Being a transplant from New York to Kansas City, I love the city as if I grew up here,” he said. “With that being said, I think that people are finally recognizing, including our company, that Kansas City is becoming a hub of innovation, entrepreneurship and technology.”
Cramer recalled the early days of what is now FullStack, going from its uncertain beginnings to its now multi-state presence.
“It’s kind of the classic American dream entrepreneurship story where you just bootstrapped it all the way up,” Cramer said. “I learned everything I needed to learn and taught myself what I needed to teach myself.”’
FullStack has a staff working in Kansas City on a full-time basis, but has yet to finalize a location within the Kansas City metro.
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