YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – As KO Consulting LLC expands into new markets, there will be a continued need for more staff and more space, its founder said.
The community and economic development firm celebrated the opening of its new offices in the Ohio One Building with a ribbon-cutting ceremony hosted by the Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber and open house Thursday afternoon. It moved into its new offices July 23 from space it leased at Penguin City Brewing Co.
“We specifically chose to stay in Youngstown because we feel that as the city goes, so goes our area,” Kristen Olmi, CEO, said. “We’re very much believers in ‘Be the change that you wish to see in the world.’”
A former grants coordinator for Mahoning County, Olmi started KO Consulting on a part-time basis in 2010. The business moved into a full-time operation with staff in 2020, she said. The firm now has 11 full-time employees and two-part-time employees.
“We have a lot more areas throughout the state of Ohio that are really looking for our services, and as we continue to grow there will be a continued need for more staff,” she said.
The consulting firm provides a range of services from doing business plans, cash flow projections and business filings with the Ohio secretary of state’s office to project development, grant research, grant writing and grant compliance, Olmi said. It has three subdivisions: business, nonprofit and government.
Municipalities and nonprofits mainly rely on the firm for grant-writing services, Olmi said. When individuals come in interested in starting their own business, the first thing she and her staff do is direct them to various free resources that exist, including the Ohio Minority Business Assistance Center at Youngstown Business Incubator and the Small Business Development Center at Youngstown State University.
“Then if they want our services for cash flow statements, we will help them put that together,” she continued.
KO’s clients include the cities of Struthers, Campbell and Girard, bringing more than $750,000 annually for wastewater treatment plants, brownfield development and other projects, she said.
“We would not be in the situation we are moving forward with the city of Struthers if it was not for KO,” Mayor Catherine Cercone Miller said.
KO thinks “outside the box” to find grant funds from sources beyond the tri-county area, she added. In addition, the firm did Struthers’ first comprehensive plan.
Much of its work with nonprofit entities and small businesses is less often publicized. “The nonprofit and small business clients, we really like to let the client shine and not necessarily talk about the work that we’re doing for them, because it’s their story and their success more than it’s ours,” Olmi said.
KO also partners with Prest Public Strategies, Cleveland, which leases office space from the firm.
“We do a lot of work with her on the grant-writing side, the economic development side and compliance,” JOsh Prest, founder and principal, said. “I handle all of the government relations and lobbying, both at the state and federal level for my clients and then also for KO’s clients as well.
Olmi also said her firm will work with the new owners of the Ohio One Building, Ohio One Group, with its plans for the property.
At more than 3,000 square feet, the space is significantly larger than the approximately 800 square feet of offices at Penguin City, though Olmi expressed her appreciation for housing the firm in its startup phase.
“We love the new space. It’s really nice to be able to have two different conference rooms, a public conference room where we could bring in clients, and then the private conference room back on the back end of the offices for training,” she said. “That’s been very beneficial for staff meetings for training.”
She also committed to keeping the firm based in Youngstown, regardless of where it expands.
“I’m a big believer in you have a choice: You either leave and continue to be part of the problem, or stay and be part of the solution. And we’re committed to Youngstown,” she said. “We are a community and economic development firm, so we want to be where we can be the most helpful.”
Pictured at top: Struthers Mayor Catherine Cercone Miller and KO Consulting CEO Kristen Olmi.