Union Kitchen × First Run Accelerator

From our
kitchen to
retail shelves.

Union Kitchen is the licensed facility where you produce. First Run is the playbook that runs with it. First Run meets you at the idea stage and builds the brand with you. 90 Days to shelf. 90 Days to Prove it's ready to scale.

Just tour the kitchen for now →
Day one, to exit● Shelves over slide decks● Idea to shelf to scale● Operators, not tourists● Real stores, real shoppers● Day one, to exit● Shelves over slide decks● Idea to shelf to scale● Operators, not tourists● Real stores, real shoppers●
Food & beverage only/ We build winners/ Built from the idea up/ Since 2014/ Food & beverage only/ We build winners/ Built from the idea up/ Since 2014/ Food & beverage only/ We build winners/ Built from the idea up/ Since 2014/ Food & beverage only/ We build winners/ Built from the idea up/ Since 2014/

Our kitchen
solves this month

Most first-time founders come to us with the same list. It is a good list. It is also about a tenth of what stands between a home recipe and a product a buyer will stock.

What you were looking for
  • A licensed kitchen that allows you to grow
  • Equipment and cold storage
  • Room to make more than a weekend’s worth
  • To stop cooking out of your house
What you still have to figure out
  • A recipe that tastes as great on shelf as when you make it at home
  • A price that leaves you 40–50% gross margin
  • Retailers willing to put your product on shelf
  • A distributor who returns your email
  • Packaging a buyer takes seriously
  • Nutrition panels, barcodes, insurance, trademark
  • Proof that shoppers come back a fifth time
  • A network around you

First Run does that part with you. The kitchen is where it happens.

First Run is your day one partner.

See the First Run Accelerator →

First Run meets you at the idea stage and builds the brand with you: formulation inside the facility, packaging, pricing, your first production run, then a real shelf with real customers.

Union Kitchen is proudly the official partner of the First Run Accelerator, where you will manufacture your product.

Accelerator

Months 0–6 · build and validate

Angel

Early traction · raising

Fund

Proven demand · scaling
How First Run Works

90 days to shelf.
90 days to prove it.

First Run helps you launch your product in 90 days, built to work for any retailer, from an independent shop to Walmart, Target, or Whole Foods. The next 90 days, you prove it's worth scaling.

Goal: get a product built to work for any retailer or distributor — in hand, priced right, and ready to ship.

Day 0–15

Diagnostic, Category Fit & Backplan

  • Competitive read
  • Value proposition evolution
  • What we’d underwrite
Day 15–45

Product & Packaging

  • Formulation inside our facility
  • Shelf-ready design, spec lock, retailer and distributor requirements
Day 45–70

Production & Pricing

  • Price to 40–50% gross
  • Small batch runs
  • Demo testing in stores
Day 70–90

First Production Run

  • Built to work for any retailer and distributor
Checkpoint — Day 90 Product in hand, priced right, ready to ship.

Goal: prove your product is worth scaling — customers who come back, margins that hold up, and the traction to earn real distributor and investor interest.

Day 90–110

Local Launch & First Doors

  • Intros & demos
  • Door-to-door selling
  • First product on shelf
Day 110–150

Expanding

  • Local sales push
  • Build real sales history
Day 150–170

Margin Reality & Proof

  • First real margin check
  • Confirm the three goals with field numbers
Day 170–180

Distributor Intros & Underwriting

  • Warm distributor introductions (only with real sales)
  • Intro to angel group
Checkpoint — Day 180 Real sales history, proven margins, and warm intros to distributors and capital.
The Short List

What First Run looks for

  • Brands that can win on product, not just promotion
  • Businesses that belong in the grocery aisle, or the freezer
  • A desire to move fast with operators who have done it before
  • Founders ready to build and do the hard things

You do not need revenue, a co-packer, or a finished label. An idea and the willingness to work through six months is the starting line.

Only want the kitchen?

That also works for us. Union Kitchen membership gets you licensed production space, storage, and access to a community of food entrepreneurs. The Accelerator is open to you later, on rolling applications.

See kitchen membership →

Contact Us

Tell us what you’re building. We’ll follow up if there’s a fit.