Resources:
Sarah Rigg's Feature Article: Food business changes in Ypsi: Incubator closes, accelerator opens, and entrepreneurs scale up
Growing Hope Food Entrepreneurship
Stepping Stones to Food Entrepreneurship
Transcription:
Rylee Barnsdale: You're listening to 89.1 WEMU. I'm Rylee Barnsdale, and this is On the Ground Ypsi. Incubator kitchens, or commercial kitchen spaces for food-based entrepreneurs to rent and share as they develop their future business models and plans, are an integral resource to those with big food ideas but lack of access to specific equipment while also providing information and assistance both on business matters, like marketing and advertising, and food matters, like food safety and product testing. With all of the great food options we have here in Ypsi, On the Ground project manager Sarah Rigg wanted to find out what options do the food entrepreneurs have for resources like these. Today, I'm here with Growing Hope incubator kitchen manager Deante Bland to get an idea of what Growing Hope's incubator looks like and provides to its tenants and how the organization hopes to help them succeed once they've outgrown the incubator space. Hi, Deante! Thanks so much for being here today!
Deante Brand: Hi, Rylee! Thank you for having me!
Rylee Barnsdale: So, Growing Hope's incubator kitchen opened up back in 2018, and you stepped into the role of manager a few years after the space had significantly expanded in 2021. What were your initial thoughts coming into this space? Did you have big goals or dreams for what it could look like and what it can do for entrepreneurs in the area?
Deante Brand: Yeah, well, I guess a little bit of a background. My wife and I moved to the area last January, and I was actually looking for a commercial kitchen space myself. And that's how I kind of got word of Growing Hope. And then, a friend of mine told me that they were opening up their space for more people and were looking for a kitchen manager. And so, I slipped my application in looking for space. So, I didn't really get to see the space prior to applying but had looked for kitchens back in Indiana where we were from. And so, I knew about commercial kitchens but was really just kind of wondering and expecting of what it would look like.
Rylee Barnsdale: And looking at the incubator today, now in 2025, you started back in 2024, am I correct?
Deante Brand: Yes.
Rylee Barnsdale: How are things going? How many businesses are you collaborating with right now? Is there room for anymore right now? Can you give an idea of what things look like over there?
Deante Brand: Yeah. So, when I stepped into the role, one of my big goals was to increase some of our storage space. Anyone who's been in a commercial kitchen or rented a commercial kitchen will realize that rental space runs out as quickly as you can put it in. And so, we really just looked at doubling the amount of space that we had, so that we could really not only help businesses, but take on more businesses. So, we currently have a contract with right around 26 different food entrepreneurs. Some of them are packers. Some of them are bakers. And then, we also have some food trucks and hot food vendors. So, our kitchen really tries to service different groups of people and different food entrepreneurs. And we're looking to continue to grow. I keep a sheet that tells me how many hours I have available each month. And I think we'll cap out between 30 and 40 businesses.
Rylee Barnsdale: Okay.
Deante Brand: That's kind of where we'll hit our cap. But we're trying to look at ways of, even once we're full, to enable other spaces to be available for food entrepreneurs of that. We don't hold a monopoly on the market if that makes sense.
Rylee Barnsdale: And since the kitchen's launch, it's seen 15 different businesses graduate from the space and move forward in their business endeavors. And I'm curious if there are any success stories that you can share of folks who started out in the Growing Hope space and now have moved on to greener, bigger pastures.
Deante Brand: Yeah, there are four. So, when I started September, we had I think three that have kind of graduated into their own space since, but a lot of that work was prior to my time. One of the big ones, I'm actually probably gonna stop there right after this, is No Label Juice. They're a juice company in Ypsi over by Planet Fitness. And it's a husband and wife, and that's a great example of how two people can come together and partner together. One person had a dream and had a product and the other had some know-how of "let's get that product to people and show people its worth." And it's been cool to get to see them. They do drinks, smoothies, coffee drinks, and really look to even partner with other businesses as well. Kind of with that, they partner with one of our other recent graduates, EK's Cheesecakes. They are in Milan, and he has a bakery that he shares with Rich Greens Bakery. And so, again, another husband and wife for EK where he is selling cheesecakes and then different baked goods as well. And then also, Beara Bakes is another one.
Rylee Barnsdale: Oh yes!
Deante Brand: Bird Dog Bakery and then BQ Bakery as well
Rylee Barnsdale: So, if I am a food entrepreneur looking to start up or perhaps grow my business, why would you encourage me to seek out a resource like an incubator kitchen? We talked a little bit about what some of those potential services an incubators kitchen can offer. But if I'm looking for something specific, can I find it in an incubator kitchen?
Deante Brand: Yeah, what I love about the incubator kitchen space is it provides a affordable entryway into the food entrepreneurship space. We like to say that the incubator kitchen is a safe place to succeed, but it's also a safe place to fail. And anyone who has had a chance to go out and get into a brick-and-mortar space, there is a lot of liability with that. You've signed onto a lease. You owe someone money. Even if it's not that month immediately, you're on for a contract. Whereas with our incubator space, we give a chance for people to be able to come in prior to being licensed to come and test and get used to the space. And then, once you're licensed, you can expand and start to grow your customer base. So, it's an opportunity for you to be able to begin making money as you prep yourself for growing, get to see how customers are liking your products, and then continue to expand your menu as you're in this space and seeing how people respond to each new product that you're getting out there.
Rylee Barnsdale: So, for someone who might not be familiar, can you walk us through what it actually looks like to be a tenant in the Growing Hope Incubator Kitchen? What kind of supports do folks get, in addition to that kitchen space and that access to those high-quality tools and resources and things like that?
Deante Brand: Yeah, so we have an inquiry form that we ask people to submit that you can get access to if you go to growinghope.net and go under our programs tab--under food entrepreneurship. From there, I like to set up a call one-on-one with someone and just get to hear about your product, your goals, and your dream. Why are you starting your business? What are your hopes for that business? And then, from there, I love to schedule a time for you to come in and actually get to tour the facility because we kind of are laid out with three spaces. Two come in one rental package. And then, one is a little smaller, and it's for businesses that maybe don't need a stove or convection ovens or any of those things. Maybe they just need packing space. So, once we have that kitchen walkthrough, I'll bring you in and walk you through our cooking area where we have two convectionary ovens. We have a six-burner stove and oven combo. Then we have a steam kettle currently that we're getting rid of. I laugh because every time someone comes into the kitchen, my spiel is, "We're trying to sell this. Eventually, we'll sell it." Because we have some people that want to bring in more fryers and things like that for hot food. So, I'll walk you through that area where we also have our three-bin sink and a prep table. And then, past that, we have our biggest prep space, which has six different prep tables, a walk-in fridge, a walk-in cooler, two stand-up freezers, and then a ton of storage space. And then, we also a lot of shared equipment in that space as well that businesses will get access to.
Rylee Barnsdale: This is WEMU's On The Ground Ypsi. I'm talking with Growing Hope Incubator Kitchen Manager, Deante Bland. So, Deante, the incubator kitchen isn't all that Growing Hope has to offer to food entrepreneurs, I'm sure. Can you give us a brief rundown of what other resources and services folks can find in addition to the incubator kitchen?
Deante Brand: Yeah. So, we try to also be providing educational supports to our food entrepreneurs. So, we're currently in a workshop series called "Stepping Stones." And that series partners with different technical assistance providers within the food entrepreneurship scene. So, we'll be partnering with WCC, with Marianne Apley. She's gonna come in and teach a business class on doing a lean business plan, doing a SWAT analysis. And then we're gonna be also partnering with Taste of Local Difference and doing marketing and branding. So, we also try to find ways to help provide education and meet that educational gap for those that didn't have a chance to go to business school and are doing this in conjunction with their nine-to-five, which we have a lot of small business owners that have a full-time job and they're doing this and their extra free time. Aside from that, then I also try to be talking to our business owners about different things that we can be doing within the kitchen to help them. And then, I also send out a monthly newsletter. I was writing that prior to coming here. It'll talk about grants, any networking opportunities, or any other resources in the community, and then in Michigan, that can provide funding opportunities or networking opportunities to continue building your brand.
Rylee Barnsdale: And as the landscape continues to evolve and change for food entrepreneurs here in Ypsi, are there new projects in the works over at Growing Hope that hope to further expand those services, that already variety of services that you're offering.
Deante Brand: Yeah. So, we are working on building an accelerator space, which will be a space that one to two businesses can rent and actually be able to sell products directly to customers. So, it'll have a little area where there will be direct business to consumer interaction. And then, we're also looking at developing what we're calling the Growing Hope Kitchen Network, where we will be working with other licensable spaces in the area to connect them to people who are looking for a kitchen to people who have a kitchen that just needs to be licensed and providing the structure for renting that space out at an affordable price for them.
Rylee Barnsdale: Well, Deante, thank you so much for joining us here today and giving us a better idea of how Growing Hope's Incubator Kitchen works and operates and the sneak peek of things to come. I'm sure that you and the rest of the Growing Hope team are all very excited to see how everything kind of evolves over the rest of the year.
Deante Brand: Yeah, yeah, we're definitely excited! And what I would definitely suggest that if anyone has time to go ahead and head to our website, we do numerous types of services. The entrepreneurship space is actually our smallest of the different programs that we do. Yeah, we have a ton of different programs, so we try to do a lot of things in that food system scene.
Rylee Barnsdale: For more information on today's topic and links to the full article, visit our website at wemu.org. On the Ground Ypsi is brought to you in partnership with Concentrate Media. I'm Rylee Barnsdale, and this is your community NPR station, 89.1 WEMU FM Ypsilanti. Celebrating 60 years of broadcasting at Eastern Michigan University!
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