Lead Bank is giving a whole new name to community banking

This post was sponsored by Lead Bank.

Lead Bank in the Crossroads may have a chic rooftop patio, a prime location on Main Street, and the latest tech in banking, but its focus on community is what really makes it stand out.

“I think just walking in the branch, it becomes visible that we care about the community,” says Lead Bank branch manager Patrick Unrein. “Everything is built with the community in mind: We have a space for clients and non-clients to work, use our WiFi, have our coffee, and take time to just sit down and get work done in a quiet place.”

The front lobby is always open to the public and often has small business owners or community members enjoying a free space to work. Its meeting rooms, which all have video conferencing capabilities, are also open to reserve. Lead Bank’s CEO Josh Rowland, says “Lead Bank gives small business owners the space and ability to get work done, but more importantly, it gives us the chance to connect with the people we support.”

Even when you aren’t enjoying free coffee, Lead Bank’s community programs reach beyond its doors. For example: its collaboration with the Kansas City Art Institute.

“We have a community art piece that rotates out quarterly just outside our building, and we’re starting an Emerging Artists Program to feature work from local Kansas City Art Institute students,” Unrein says.

It’s a way to engage with KC’s art community, and for the first installment of the Emerging Artists Program there will be art — including sculpture, digital art, and traditional paintings and photos — on display inside the bank. Earlier this spring in March, Lead Bank hosted the second annual Road Roller printmaking event with KCAI where students created original works. Original prints from that event are currently hanging inside Lead Bank’s Main Street lobby.

“My favorite thing that we do for the community that I haven’t seen elsewhere is our For Change Initiative,” says Unrein. “It is a partnership with the city of Kansas City that allows us to provide special funding to disadvantaged women- or minority-owned businesses who have city contracts.”

“We’re able to get capital to people in ways they otherwise couldn’t, so they can grow their business and ultimately improve our community as a whole,” says Rowland.

Unrein jokes that sometimes he gets sick of saying the word community so much, but it’s at the core of everything Lead Bank does.

“If you’re at a big bank, you have no idea what your deposit dollars are being spent on,” he says. “But you can see in our commitment to the community that your money is being put to good use. It’s going to artists, it’s going to disadvantaged women and children, and it’s going to projects that will make your life better in some way.”

On top of championing community, Lead Bank manages to make the lives of small business owners easier, too. Along with its open door at the branch, Lead Bank Crossroads also hosts the Workbench, a self-service counter with an ATM and computer.

“The ideal situation is a small business owner comes in to make their deposit at the ATM, they turn to the right and access their online banking, their Quickbooks, their payroll, whatever they need to do, and by the time their coffee is done, their banking is done too,” Unrein says.

Next to the Workbench is the unique Grow Home Spotlight. Every quarter, Lead Bank features one of its small business owners, giving each a space to sell their products. It not only brings attention to local businesses, it also highlights what its clients are up to.

“I think my favorite part of the Grow Home Spotlight is not when I sell something, but instead when I find a way to connect small business owners personally, so they can start to help each other,” Unrein says. “If we aren’t connecting people, then we aren’t supporting our community in the way a community bank should.”

Learn more about Lead Bank’s next community event here. Lead Bank is teaming up with Children’s Mercy Hospital and community members to assemble Happy Kits at each of its three locations on Wednesday, August 8, over lunch. Interested in participating? RSVP to RSVP@lead.bank with the number in your party and which location you plan to attend.