Startup Spaces: Inside Brad Feld’s FiberHouse with Handprint

3D modeling startup Handprint has an untraditional story of how its team came to be located in Kansas City. After co-founder Mike Demarais spent time in Ben Barreth’s Homes for Hackers house, he decided to relocate to the Kansas City Startup Village (KCSV). Then when Handprint won Brad Feld’s KC FiberHouse competition, the rest of…

Sponsor: Thanks to turnstone, an office furniture company focusing on small businesses, for supporting Silicon Prairie News. The company is sponsoring our monthly Startup Spaces series.

About the author: The Turnstone Tip is authored by Jenny Gauld, space planner for turnstone.


3D modeling startup Handprint has an untraditional story of how its team came to be located in Kansas City.

After co-founder Mike Demarais spent time in Ben Barreth‘s Homes for Hackers house, he decided to relocate to the Kansas City Startup Village (KCSV). Then when Handprint won Brad Feld’s KC FiberHouse competition, the rest of the team—originally based in Boston—also relocated to KCSV and moved into the FiberHouse in April. 

“We love to tinker at Handprint,” Demarais told Silicon Prairie News. “Our space is often filled with various electronics and computer parts that we try to repurpose into useful things. Right now we are building a network activity monitor out of LEDs that we are going to embed into our workspace wall.”

At roughly 950 square feet, the FiberHouse is a cozy home and workplace for the four-person Handprint team. With a newly renovated upstairs workspace and interior design elements sponsored by turnstone, Demarais says Handprint is even more effectively utilizing its unique space. 

“Our favorite things about our space are our 3D printer corner, our copious amounts of writeable surfaces and our Campfire Big Table from turnstone—it’s revolutionized how we drink coffee and write emails,” Demarais said.

The KCSV is located in a residential area near the Kansas and Missouri state line, not far from Westport and the Plaza. Handprint’s neighbors include startups like EyeVerify, Leap2 and Hoolpa.io, to name a few.

Turnstone Tip 

“Turnstone would like to give high fives to Handprint of Kansas City for creating this innovative space. Working out of the Feld FiberHouse, this group has made excellent use of their cozy quarters, creating a relaxed, fun environment in which to work and create. 

Handprint has done an awesome job of maximizing surfaces throughout the house by making walls double as whiteboards. We also love how they’ve preserved the original brickwork as a nice contrast against their white walls. The upstairs Big Depot fits perfectly under the sloped attic ceiling, providing organization for the team and the Campfire Big Table is a natural gathering spot for meals and group work.

One fun thing this team might enjoy would be to gather three or four Buoys around their Paper Table for increased collaboration and engagement. Because they’re already using the Paper Table as ‘brainstorming central,’ we think the addition of the Buoys would enhance impromptu meetings.”

Handprint will receive two turnstone buoys for free as a thanks for participating in SPN’s Startup Spaces. To submit your startup for consideration, email editor@siliconprairienews.com to tell us why your company should be featured, and include a few photos. 

Handprint’s recently renovated upstairs workspace gives the four-person team a great venue for collaboration. 


The Handprint team won free rent in Brad Feld’s FiberHouse during a competition earlier this year. The team has lived and worked in the home, located in KCSV, since April. 


Handprint’s team lives and works in the FiberHouse, meaning they need versatile furniture like turnstone’s Campfire Big Table (pictured above). 


Since Handprint is a 3D printing startup, the house is outfitted with a number of 3D printers. 


Dry erase board walls allow the Handprint team to brainstorm and collaborate on a much bigger scale.


Since the Handprint team lives and works in the fiberhouse, fun elements like video game systems and the skateboard rack (pictured above) are staples of this startup’s house. 

This post has been co-authored by our sponsor, turnstone.

Turnstone also recently created a customer story video featuring the Handprint team and their space: 


Credits: Photos by Brooke Vandever. Video courtesy of turnstone


About our sponsor: Turnstone believes that our world needs innovative entrepreneurs and successful small businesses. We champion the idea that intentionally designed spaces and a vibrant office culture play a big role in this success. That’s why we’re committed to making it easier for leaders to leverage space and culture to help their companies thrive.

This story is part of the AIM Archive

This story is part of the AIM Institute Archive on Silicon Prairie News. AIM gifted SPN to the Nebraska Journalism Trust in January 2023. Learn more about SPN’s origin »

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