Service Type: Consulting Engagement
Topic: Growth Planning
Location: Bay Area
Organization Mission & OverviewEstablished in 2005, La Cocina fosters low-income food entrepreneurs, particularly women from communities of color and immigrant backgrounds. Providing affordable kitchen space, technical assistance, and market access, La Cocina facilitates business formalization and expansion. Core programs include business incubation, development, sales access, storytelling, industry and policy advocacy, community building, and placemaking. These initiatives sustain food businesses and advocate for industry-wide change. La Cocina’s social enterprise model not only aids entrepreneurs but also showcases inclusive economic development, advancing a more equitable food ecosystem.
La Cocina was in a leadership transition that coincided with the gradual emergence from a pandemic that disproportionately impacted both the food industry and communities of color. Transitioning from a period of crisis to one of stabilization, the organization sought to pivot towards planning and growth, recognizing the deep-seated needs within the Bay Area community and the potential for its model to serve as a beacon of recovery elsewhere. Challenges lay in addressing infrastructural and organizational gaps, necessitating the hiring and training of additional staff, alongside ongoing obstacles in sales channels, notably corporate catering, which remained subdued.
PennPAC embarked on an engagement with La Cocina with the aim of assisting the organization in systematizing its Consulting/Advisory Business. The overarching objective was to empower La Cocina to streamline its consulting and advocacy services, thereby enhancing its capacity to collaborate with partners and foster a business model characterized by stable revenue streams and meaningful global impact.
The approach began with a comprehensive assessment of La Cocina’s past consulting projects, seeking to extract valuable insights and identify areas for improvement. The team then developed a playbook for La Cocina’s consulting offerings. Through this process, the team delved into the details of each project, analyzing their efficacy and impact, and distilling key learnings to inform future endeavors.
The team conducted a detailed assessment of La Cocina’s utilization of Salesforce, a key tool in supporting its consulting services. Through interviews with relevant stakeholders and an in-depth exploration of La Cocina’s existing Salesforce infrastructure, the team gained a nuanced understanding of current practices and identified opportunities for optimization and expansion.
PennPAC’s recommendations significantly bolstered La Cocina’s consulting services. The tiered pricing model and compelling pitch deck attracted new partners, resulting in a $300,000 grant for expanding consulting partnerships. Salesforce utilization was streamlined, enabling efficient client management and paving the way for a new webpage with an interest form. La Cocina now prioritizes consulting services and aspires to showcase thought leadership in the industry. This success, coupled with PennPAC’s tailored volunteer expertise, underscores the lasting impact of their collaboration.
