PORTLAND, Oregon — When you start a business, there’s plenty of uncertainty.
“There's a lot of unknowns in entering this market, and so our goal is to help entrepreneurs save a lot of time and money by bringing all the resources and information to them in a classroom setting,” said Jill Beaman, food business advisor at Portland Community College’s Small Business Development Center (SBDC).
“The goal is to have a safe and profitable product prototype created at the end of this program,” she said.
The program is called “Getting Your Recipe to Market” (GYRM). It’s in partnership with Portland Community College (PCC), Oregon State University’s Food Innovation Center and New Seasons Market. The course aims to eliminate a lot of the guesswork when it comes to launching a new food product.
“Not just the ingredients but the labor and the commercial kitchens and the packaging, so that they can price their product accurately,” Beaman said.
Lisa Tran graduated from the 12-week course in 2016. She was considering getting out of the restaurant business when she discovered GYRM on campus at PCC.
“I saw a flyer that said 'Getting Your Recipe to Market.'” And it really said, ‘Do you have a recipe? Have you always wondered how to get it to market? We can help,’” Tran said.
She runs Tân Tân Cafe and Delicatessen with her mom. They both felt like their sauces were worthy of store shelves. Thanks to the program, their hot chili, hoisin and peanut sauce are all on the market. They're available at New Seasons, Green Zebra, Market of Choice, Chuck's Produce and Elephant's Delicatessen, among other stores.
“One of the highlights is at the end of this program, they get to present to New Seasons buyers, pitch their product and also just get feedback before they actually go into business,” Beaman said.
An annual trade hosted by PCC show gives participants more opportunities to make pitches to retailers and the public.
“Even though we throw all this information at them about the hurdles involved, they still are ready to go for it and I'm just impressed with their drive that they have,” said Beaman.
Tran is getting ready to reopen her restaurant as restrictions slowly twist off. She encourages anyone thinking about selling a product to just take the first step.
“It's the number one best investment that I have ever made in this whole journey,” she said. “You get lifetime mentorship. The advisors are amazing. I like to say everything I learned is really from this class.”