In honor of Economic Development Week, this month we are spotlighting creative local initiatives that are helping strengthen Frederick’s business ecosystem. These innovative programs are fostering critical connections and leveraging diverse resources to make Frederick an even better place to live, work, and play.
Here we take a look at:
Food Business Entrepreneurship Program
The Program
Frederick Community College’s Food Business Entrepreneurship Program offers free business training to future and/or expanding food entrepreneurs.
Recognizing that a successful business needs much more than just a tasty menu, the curriculum covers a range of concepts in entrepreneurship and food service management.
Topics covered include: front and back of house operations, financial management, marketing and sales, regulatory requirements, sanitation and food safety, kitchen skills, and more.
The program culminates in a pitch competition, in which participants showcase their new business concepts to local industry and financial community partners to win monetary awards and/or customized mentorships to a local shared kitchen.
Most importantly, the pitch competition helps participants to deeply consider & understand the financials of their business model. The exercise prepares each participant to confidently approach lenders/investors as they build their business in the future.
A Team Effort
Hosted by Frederick Community College and sponsored by The City of Frederick and Frederick County Office of Economic Development, the program brings together the resources of higher education and economic development. This partnership provides participants direct access to experts on foundation-level concepts and knowledge in both entrepreneurship and food service management.
The program has also established a partnership with Maryland Bakes – one of Frederick’s shared kitchen businesses. Last year, Maryland Bakes provided a free 6 month-mentorship as the top prize of the pitch competition. Introducing program participants to the shared kitchen model helps showcase alternative paths to business ownership and unique ways to reduce start-up costs. Additional prizes for top contestants were provided by Food Pro and Wegman’s.
Success so Far
Although the program focuses on an intentionally specialized topic, demand for this curation of skills-learning has been high – with over 50 program participants in just two years!
To date, an estimated 8 participants from the first cohort have already gone on to either start their own business, grow their cottage food business, or take additional steps in terms of training/financing to get closer to the open of their own business. One business owner who participated (Big Papi’s) has expanded to a second location.
Learn more about the program here.