This story was originally published in the 2023 Local Food Guide.
“Hospitality is about sharing. I want to share and help people’s lives be better and sweeter,” says Claudia Morales, owner of Nutty Biscotti. Morales started her business after 20 years of making biscottis for family and friends.
Like Morales, all food entrepreneurs are driven by passion and belief in their product’s excellence, but how does that passion turn into a functional business? Behind every food business is a maker who has secured a license and production space, balanced books, marketed their product, and performed countless to-dos; each step required for business ownership contributes to a high barrier to entry.
Seeking to mitigate this barrier, a network of incubator kitchens across Southeast Michigan, which include Proud Mitten Shared Kitchen, Growing Hope, Eastern Market’s Detroit Kitchen Connect Program, and others, supports budding food businesses. An incubator kitchen is a shared commercial kitchen space that accommodates early-stage food entrepreneurs. Incubator Kitchen Managers seek individuals who are “prepared, have a compelling product, passion & spirit and a strong motivation level,” says Christine Quane, Manager of EM’s DKC program. Beyond their incubator space, EM’s DKC program partners with other kitchens across Metro Detroit, assisting them with client connection and onboarding. EM has an accelerator kitchen program that connects makers with individual production space, co-packers, and distributors.
Catherine Spencer of Beara Bakes started her baked goods business out of her home. “Every surface of our counter was covered with baked goods,” she shares. “We quickly realized we can’t do this [without more space]!” The support of Growing Hope has not only given her physical space but helped Spencer double her sales. Humaira Arain of Peach & Honey Bakes has experienced similar support from Proud Mitten Kitchen, which continually adjusts to her business needs, providing storage for large equipment and connecting her with resources.
Incubator kitchens not only provide space and resources but also a collaborative community of industry experts and fellow entrepreneurs. Scott Eatmon of Detroit Jerky considers this community essential. “Choose the kitchen with the strongest community who are willing to be open and share resources,” he advises.
Kitchen managers are dedicated to building these environments and are considered key advocates and mentors. As Bee Mayhew, Kitchen Manager at Growing Hope shares, “I like to think that my own level of experience and honesty about the reality of owning a small restaurant is useful for many folks here. I’m an enthusiastic supporter and love finding ways to make different situations work.” This mentorship and connection in a supportive space equip food businesses to succeed. Marlo Bendon, Manager of Proud Mitten, sums up the unique mission of incubator kitchens in her mantra: Cook. Create. Collaborate.
Advice for Starting a Food Business, From the Experts
- Bee Mayhew of Growing Hope: “I suggest looking at their own weak points first because finding a way to mitigate the things we aren’t good at right from the outset can make or break a business. Also, know that operating a food business has as much to do with problem-solving as it does with food production.”
- Marlo Bendon of Proud Mitten Shared Kitchen: “A food business cannot just be a hobby or passion project. It’s important to know whether or not a business has gained traction. Our biggest resource is each other. Learn how to collaborate and build strategically.”
- Christine Quane of Detroit Kitchen Connect: “I cannot stress enough the importance of business planning before starting; creating a business plan, doing a breakeven analysis, understanding production, packaging and food costs, and starting out with a solid understanding and practice of bookkeeping. There are many business support organizations in this city that are waiting and willing to help; build that network out before starting.”
Learn More about these Michigan Incubator Kitchens
Growing Hope Incubator Kitchen (Ypsilanti) offers startup food businesses affordable rates and a kitchen ecosystem focused on collaboration to accelerate growth. They are launching an OCED funded business activator program which provides 1:1 coaching and significant monetary support for business growth.
Proud Mitten Shared Kitchen (Plymouth) is an affordable commercial kitchen, assembly, packaging, and baking space which supports food businesses at various stages of growth. Recently, they launched the Culinary Concepts teaching kitchen, a community cooking school.
Eastern Market’s Detroit Kitchen Connect Program (Detroit) provides accessible, reliable spaces for local entrepreneurs to process high-quality food products in a diverse and collaborative community environment. Anyone interested in starting or growing a food business is welcome to attend DKC’s open monthly course: How to Get Started in a Commercial Kitchen.