Founded in 2005, Kansas City magazine began its life as 435 South, a lifestyle publication focusing on southern Johnson County. The original magazine was started by Gannett, the national media organization that owns USA Today, and it promised lots of gloss and glamour. But early on, the team discovered what readers really wanted was authenticity and stories about the people, places and issues that made up their community.
A few years in, Gannett decided to close the fledgling title, and a small group of supporters led by Kathy Boos stepped in to buy it, knowing that there was still a need and audience. Those early years were marked by long nights and creative risks, Boos says.
Between 2006 and 2011, the publication became a JoCo fixture, focusing on neighborhoods, entrepreneurs and community life. It was intimate and proudly local.
But as Kansas City began its own cultural and creative renaissance, it was clear that the magazine needed to expand right along with the metro. “Kansas City was changing,” Boos says. “The downtown resurgence, the lofts, the food scene—oh my, the food scene—and the arts, the reenergized neighborhoods. These were all an important and exciting part of our city.”
By 2012, the magazine moved beyond the suburbs, dropped South from its name, became just 435 (as in the 435 freeway that circles the metro) and started to cover the entire area. The magazine began to tell the full story of Kansas City. The city’s arts movement, food scene and downtown reinvention offered endless inspiration.
The official rebrand to Kansas City magazine came in 2019, alongside a sleek redesign and a renewed editorial vision: to combine “lifestyle with journalism and aesthetics with authenticity,” says Boos. The magazine’s pages started featuring everything from Best of KC and Top Doctors to long-form profiles and investigations into the city’s evolving identity.
In 2023, a new chapter began when a group of civic-minded investors bought the magazine with the aim of increasing the magazine’s coverage and community reach. Today, Kansas City magazine stands as both a reflection and a voice within the region’s creative, lifestyle, sports and business landscapes. The magazine’s mission is to celebrate Kansas City by telling the stories that define the metro and its ever-evolving identity.
Here’s to 20 more years.
