New mentorship opportunities for local Cape Town food entrepreneurs

The 12-month programme at Makers Landing in the V&A Waterfront is designed to nurture and empower food entrepreneurs by providing them with the necessary skills to scale their businesses.

The 12-month programme at Makers Landing in the V&A Waterfront is designed to nurture and empower food entrepreneurs by providing them with the necessary skills to scale their businesses.

Published Jan 2, 2025

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Local food entrepreneurs have the opportunity to participate in a programme that offers them the chance to grow their business skills and exposure in one of Cape Town’s busiest food markets.

The new mentorship programme is the 2025 Makers Landing Food Incubator Programme.

Makers Landing is a food market for small food entrepreneurs, based at the Cape Town Cruise Terminal.

In a statement, the V&A Waterfront said the 12-month programme is designed to nurture and empower food entrepreneurs by providing them with the necessary skills to scale their businesses, access to state-of-the-art kitchen equipment, production facilities and access to the growing economic opportunities in the region.

During the incubation programme, food entrepreneurs gain access to bespoke business development support, business mentorship and coaching, technical support, product development, market readiness and opportunities, export readiness, networking sessions and product development to help take their business to the next level. 

The incubation programme is broken down into three phases:

The pre-incubation phase 

The first three months are dedicated to identifying gaps in the business, key focus areas and building a strategy for future growth. This includes selection, contracting, baseline assessments and development maps.

The incubation phase 

The next five months is a comprehensive business development programme to prepare the entrepreneur for running a successful food business and scaling its operation which includes, but is not limited to regular health checks to assess implementation, scale of operations (funding readiness, market support and funding opportunities), brand development, media and public relations, market readiness and bespoke programme technical support.

The growth phase

The final four months focuses on driving access to market. A dedicated team is assigned to assist each business with market exposure and unlocking growth opportunities.

Interested parties can visit Incubator - Makers Landing to find more information and to apply as a participant.

IOL Lifestyle