This free, intensive 6-week program is designed to help the founders and CEOs of growth-oriented food and beverage producers acquire the competencies required to grow and scale existing operations and to consider the next steps in strategic growth opportunities through wholesale, retail, and direct-to-consumer sales channels.

Each week, participants will attend an interactive hour-long webinar where they’ll learn strategies to pivot toward new revenue streams, expand their production, enter new territories, and successfully scale. Subject areas include:
– Establishing Your Unique Value Proposition
– Developing and Positioning Your Brand
– Identifying Sales and Growth Opportunities

In advance of each session, participants will individually work through in-depth e-modules taught by industry experts and complete assignments that impart useful skills and strategies. At the culmination of the program, each founder will present a pitch for his/her company’s growth plan and receive actionable feedback from a select group of mentors. Participants are expected to devote 6 to 8 hours each week to the course, of which 5 to 7 hours will take the form of self-directed work.

In order to be eligible for the program, companies must be:

• Located in the Central Virginia or Shenandoah Valley region (the Central Virginia region includes the City of Charlottesville and the counties of Albemarle, Culpeper, Fluvanna, Greene, Louisa, Madison, Nelson, Orange and Rappahannock.) 
• Planning for specific growth (e.g. territory, product lines, production scale)
• Producers of food and beverage products in the consumer-packaged goods category

Interested companies must fill out an application by 5pm Eastern on Monday, March 8th to be considered for the program. The Virginia SBDC will notify selected companies by Friday, March 12th.

Funded in part through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration.

Apply for the Food & Beverage Accelerator’s inaugural cohort