Announcement
In July, Spice Kitchen Incubator welcomed Emily Park, the new program manager, to the team. Spice Kitchen Incubator, a program of the International Rescue Committee (IRC) in Salt Lake City, is a unique culinary business incubator that provides refugees and other disadvantaged community members with support to start food businesses. SPICE – an acronym for Supporting the Pursuit of Innovative Culinary Entrepreneurs - was founded in partnership with Salt Lake County and seeks to bring new flavors to Utah while empowering entrepreneurs to develop successful businesses.
Emily, who trained in the French Culinary Institute, is no stranger to the world of culinary enterprises. She brings with her years of experience as a chef and an entrepreneur. When starting and running her own business, she had to learn everything by herself. Now, she wants to be a part of making it easier for others to start their food businesses, currently pursuing a master’s degree in business for this purpose.
“The intention behind [my degree] was to get the skills needed so that I was able to help other people start their own businesses, or improve what they were doing,” Emily shares. “While I love the idea of food as ‘theater’,” she laughs, referring to her work with high-end cuisine, “I’m more drawn to food with great flavor, a strong sense of culture and history.”
The entrepreneurs participating in the Spice Kitchen Incubator program bring these foods with strong culture and great flavor to Salt Lake City. Participants will go through the initial orientation and application process, before entering pre-incubation where they receive support to build a foundation for their food business. Those successful move on to incubation, where they continue to receive assistance and resources—and access to an affordable commercial kitchen space—to grow their business. Once participants feel ready and have met established benchmarks, they graduate from the program, though are welcome to continue accessing resources as their business evolves over time.
The Spice Kitchen Incubator team is preparing for fall events and implementing new strategies from the lessons learned during the pandemic.
Photo: Amanda Crockett/IRC
Like many in the sector, entrepreneurs participating in Spice Kitchen Incubator faced numerous and complex challenges when the pandemic started. “[During] the last year and a half, because of so much uncertainty, we have been this consistency for the entrepreneurs,” shares Jackie Rodabaugh, Spice Kitchen community relations coordinator. The team is focusing on helping entrepreneurs gain momentum once again as they stride into pandemic recovery.
Though the challenges of the past 18 months have been arduous, it has inspired the staff at Spice Kitchen Incubator to ensure participants are better able to handle tough situations in the future. “Making sure you’re able to adapt to different situations ends up making your business stronger. If we impart those skills to them, they’ll be better set up to succeed in the future,” Emily shares. The team has seen this happen for the businesses that were launched during the pandemic, who are reaching for new opportunities and business models not seen at Spice Kitchen before. “It makes us stronger as a result, too,” Emily nods.
Spice Kitchen Incubator is currently preparing for Welcoming Week Salt Lake, which takes place in September. During Welcoming Week, Honey Teahive will conduct a virtual cooking class and provide a box with a scone mix and teas available for purchase.
You will find a number of opportunities at Spice Kitchen Incubator to support new American entrepreneurs striving to achieve their small business dreams. Order a monthly Community Food Box, pick up a hot meal during the weekly Spice to Go, or organize catering or a food truck for your next event. Keep an eye out for vendors at local farmer's markets selling packaged items all summer long.
Learn more about the program, the entrepreneurs and their businesses by visiting SpiceKitchenIncubator.org.