I live here in San Jose, Ca. and want to start my business up. I have
had a lot of luck selling my cheesecakes. So everyone tells me to start
selling them.
Well I want to know what I have to do, to do that.
I have heard that you need a County Approved Kitchen, Labels, Permits
and Insurance.
Can anyone help me with some starting steps???
Thanks,
Big John
Big John Cheesecakes

On 2005-12-31, > wrote:

> Can anyone help me with some starting steps???

The first step I'd take is to go down to Trader Joe's and buy one of
their New York-style cheesecakes and see how they compare to yours.
Can you compete against their price point ($6 sml, $10 lrg)? The next
is to look around for kitchens. It's probably cost prohibitive to bring
your kitchen up to code (I can almost gaurantee it). Your best bet is
to find an established kitchen that has what you need and is closed
at night when you can use it. Renting facilities from the owner
during his down time is a win-win situation. I know a lady who took
this approach for her homemade salsa business (the kitchen, not the TJ
cheese cakes .

nb

in article , notbob at
wrote on 12/31/05 1:09 AM:

> On 2005-12-31, > wrote:
>
>> Can anyone help me with some starting steps???
>
> The first step I'd take is to go down to Trader Joe's and buy one of
> their New York-style cheesecakes and see how they compare to yours.
> Can you compete against their price point ($6 sml, $10 lrg)? The next
> is to look around for kitchens. It's probably cost prohibitive to bring
> your kitchen up to code (I can almost gaurantee it). Your best bet is
> to find an established kitchen that has what you need and is closed
> at night when you can use it. Renting facilities from the owner
> during his down time is a win-win situation. I know a lady who took
> this approach for her homemade salsa business (the kitchen, not the TJ
> cheese cakes .
>
> nb
Actually, I rented space in a donut shoppe because their cooking time was at
night, and by mid-morning until early evening, the space was mine.

L

In article .com>,
wrote:

> I live here in San Jose, Ca. and want to start my business up. I have
> had a lot of luck selling my cheesecakes. So everyone tells me to
> start selling them.

Sounds like you already are selling them,

> Well I want to know what I have to do, to do that. I have heard that
> you need a County Approved Kitchen, Labels, Permits and Insurance.
> Can anyone help me with some starting steps???

Ask your county authorities. You might be best off renting an
already-inspected and licensed kitchen at a restaurant -- like in the
middle of the night when they're not using it. A friend did that for
some time with her biscotti and cookie business - rented a bakery's
ovens in the afternoons when they weren't baking. Really, though, you
need to contact your local folks about the requirements. Start with
your city building inspector - I'll bet she can refer you to the right
place. Might want to do some market research to see if there's a demand
beyond your friends who already buy them from you.
--
http://www.jamlady.eboard.com, updated 1-1-2006, Sam I Am! and Hello!