La Cocina’s program is limited to a few businesses that are identified as qualified after completing the application and assessment process. Please see the bottom of this page for our qualification criteria. Non-qualified businesses may apply as commercial kitchen users.
Attend Orientation
In order to apply to La Cocina’s incubator program, you must attend an Orientation Workshop. This workshop is free and open to the public but we suggest that you sign up ahead of time to make checking in easier. We will send a confirmation email 2 days before the orientation to confirm your sign up. All orientations take place on Wednesdays from 6-8pm at La Cocina.
Office Hours are optional, but highly suggested for anyone who is interested in applying. Office Hours are free and open to anyone who has attended an orientation and signs up. Following every orientation, La Cocina staff will be available on a designated day to answer questions relating to business planning or to the application. We will send a confirmation email on the last day people can sign up with a calendar of available time slots throughout the day and into the evening.
You can download the La Cocina application here. It explains all of the information you will need to get together in order to apply to the incubator program. In addition to completing the application form, you will need to provide a completed business plan including financials, your resume, two letters of recommendation for the program and proof of your current income.
We have three application dates in 2012:
April 10th
September 10th
December 10th
Only completed applications will be considered. They must be either delivered or mailed as a hard copy AND sent as an electronic copy via email to info@lacocinasf.org on or before the application date.
After turning in the application, qualified applicants will be invited to a personal interview with La Cocina staff and advisory committee. For those not qualified La Cocina will make an effort to provide referrals to other organization for further training.
If enrollment is approved, the prospective program participant will receive a pre-incubation plan that will include fixed benchmarks and goals for the period of pre-incubation.
Qualification Criteria
La Cocina screens applicants to the kitchen for a variety of qualifications. The incubation program is not for everyone and La Cocina requires that participants be:
Low Income: La Cocina only works with low and very low-income entrepreneurs. For income limits see the HUD listings for your county. Women, immigrants, and people from communities of color will be given the highest priority.
Business Ready: Ready-to-Start businesses, that is, qualified applicants who show evidence that they are business and personally ready, and whose business shows potential to succeed will be the highest priority. Readiness is a personal and business stage where people have already taken action to advance in their business venture, have researched and tested a feasible business, have developed some entrepreneurial skills and have achieved a threshold of personal circumstance favorable to successful management of the business. La Cocina can consider candidates who need time to achieve business readiness if they show promise.
Micro Businesses: Business of with a maximum of 5 employees with below $35,000 in assets will be La Cocina’s highest priority. La Cocina encourages the formation of small cooperatives and will consider such collaborations as a high priority.
La Cocina carefully screens applicants in order to find indicators that suggest an entrepreneur’s business readiness level as well as a business idea’s chance for success in the industry. The application process will help assess:
Entrepreneurial Skills and Competencies: La Cocina assesses the applicant’s professional experience, entrepreneurial spirit, openness to learning new skills and making necessary changes and an ability to cooperate in a challenging and busy environment.
Product Viability: At interviews, La Cocina staff samples products and menu items from each business to see if the proposed product or concept has the potential to be successful.
Community Spirit: La Cocina’s kitchen is a shared space and the incubator is a community that requires its members to work together. We look for candidates who will be:
Flexible in sharing equipment and able to work with the people around them
Capable of scheduling their kitchen use times in advance, adhering to their own schedules and planning realistically
Willing to share financial and business information and statistics with La Cocina staff
Willing to implement changes and take advice in order to improve their business or product
Open to finding new ways of doing business, including potential partnerships and/or collaborations with other tenants
Receptive to La Cocina technical assistance and training
Able to comply with La Cocina food safety and sanitation policies
Responsible for following the rules and regulations of La Cocina
Application Process
Applying to La Cocina
La Cocina’s program is limited to a few businesses that are identified as qualified after completing the application and assessment process. Please see the bottom of this page for our qualification criteria. Non-qualified businesses may apply as commercial kitchen users.
Attend Orientation
In order to apply to La Cocina’s incubator program, you must attend an Orientation Workshop. This workshop is free and open to the public but we suggest that you sign up ahead of time to make checking in easier. We will send a confirmation email 2 days before the orientation to confirm your sign up. All orientations take place on Wednesdays from 6-8pm at La Cocina.
In 2012 our Orientations will take place on:
January 18th Sign Up
March 7th Sign Up
May 2nd Sign Up
July 11th Sign Up
September 5th Sign Up
November 7th Sign Up
Attend Office Hours
Office Hours are optional, but highly suggested for anyone who is interested in applying. Office Hours are free and open to anyone who has attended an orientation and signs up. Following every orientation, La Cocina staff will be available on a designated day to answer questions relating to business planning or to the application. We will send a confirmation email on the last day people can sign up with a calendar of available time slots throughout the day and into the evening.
In 2012 our Office Hour Days are
January 30th Sign Up by Jan 25th
March 26th Sign Up by Mar 19th
May 21st Sign Up by May 14th
July 23rd Sign Up by Jul 16th
September 24th Sign Up by Sep 17th
November 26th Sign Up by Nov 19th
Turn in Application
You can download the La Cocina application here. It explains all of the information you will need to get together in order to apply to the incubator program. In addition to completing the application form, you will need to provide a completed business plan including financials, your resume, two letters of recommendation for the program and proof of your current income.
We have three application dates in 2012:
April 10th
September 10th
December 10th
Only completed applications will be considered. They must be either delivered or mailed as a hard copy AND sent as an electronic copy via email to info@lacocinasf.org on or before the application date.
After turning in the application, qualified applicants will be invited to a personal interview with La Cocina staff and advisory committee. For those not qualified La Cocina will make an effort to provide referrals to other organization for further training.
If enrollment is approved, the prospective program participant will receive a pre-incubation plan that will include fixed benchmarks and goals for the period of pre-incubation.
Qualification Criteria
La Cocina screens applicants to the kitchen for a variety of qualifications. The incubation program is not for everyone and La Cocina requires that participants be:
La Cocina carefully screens applicants in order to find indicators that suggest an entrepreneur’s business readiness level as well as a business idea’s chance for success in the industry. The application process will help assess: