JAMAICA, Queens (PIX11) – A free six-week class in Queens is helping aspiring food entrepreneurs make their business dreams happen with a touch of technology.
Queens entrepreneur Diana Rose says she wants to mix the untapped business talent in New York City with her community commercial kitchen in Jamaica. Rose hopes her kitchen, Essential Kitchen, will be a place where new entrepreneurs will feel safe and supported to dream big.
Rose created the shared commercial community kitchen space in southeast Queens with the mission to help others thrive in the food industry, with a focus on minority women. Her passion and expertise in business is now part of a free six-week class called Food Byte.
Kim Legrand, an entrepreneur from East Flatbush, is one of her 30 new students. Legrand already launched her new business called My Vegan Passport. Her company will deliver soups, salads and sandwiches that are all vegan. She hopes the class will take her business to the next level.
Students like Legrand will learn the fundamentals of launching their own food enterprises with the help of technology, all thanks to partnerships with the Tech Incubator at Queens College and LaGuardia Community College Small Business Development Center.
The class will help guide students not just in the kitchen but also with technology, helping them develop websites, a social media presence and even create apps.
Rose says she knows how hard it is to launch a business. An entrepreneur herself, she started a farmers’ market and now gets satisfaction in knowing her experience will help others make their business dreams come true.
If you want more information about these free programs or space in the kitchen, visit the Essential Kitchen website.