Stop 4

The Depot Kitchen Incubator

This culinary business incubator one block from East Main Street attracts an entrepreneur base that had previously been hiding in Lincoln County.  The Depot Kitchen Incubator renovated from the former train depot is a shared-use commercial kitchen that lends its kitchen facilities to early-stage food service businesses and provides assistance with business planning.

For many new food service businesses, the capital investment in a commercial kitchen meeting food safety regulations is too expensive and unattainable.  The vision of The Depot Kitchen Incubator is to provide an opportunity to these businesses by renting out timeslots for them to use the Depot’s kitchen and equipment.  This “community kitchen” eliminates the initial expense for entrepreneur and allows the business to develop until it generates the funds for its own facilities. 

            The Depot Kitchen Incubator’s proximity to Main Street is convenient for the Depot tenants, whose clients include city workers, downtown businesses, and hosts of local events. The Depot’s catering tenants are just blocks away from where their events are hosted downtown, and the wholesale and retail tenants is able to easily distribute their product along Main Street.

The establishment of the Depot has generated more activity for downtown Lincolnton.  The location is an asset not only to the businesses using the Depot, but also to community growth and publicity as the Depot Kitchen Incubator has brought more customers to Lincolnton from out of town.  As the only kitchen incubator in the greater area, the Depot offers services not offered nearby and attracts neighboring interest in Lincolnton.

In addition to providing the kitchen facilities and equipment, The Depot also offers help with business planning, securing finances, and other assistance to these new companies.  Because the Depot’s clients consist primarily of businesses that have not established themselves yet, the Depot acts as a mentor and provides guidance as these businesses transition from the kitchen incubator to their own facilities.  These services are encouraging more business start-ups downtown and ensure that more of them become successful.

Although the main focus of the Depot Kitchen Incubator is not to serve food onsite, the restored Depot building has a porch along the side and an outdoor picnic area where customers can sit and socialize beside the Rail-Trail with a glass of lemonade.