Hi, I'm Jeff.

I bridge the gap between kitchen craftsmanship and business reality. With over 30 years in the food industry, I’ve had the privilege of working across every side of the business —from building concepts from scratch and running wholesale bakeries to training in Europe and leading elite culinary programs.

Today, my main focus is Food Startup Help, where my partners and I assist food entrepreneurs in turning raw concepts into profitable, scalable realities, while also partnering with larger, established brands to optimize product development and fine-tune their existing formulations. 

What I Do Now

· Co-Founder & Consultant, Food Startup Help: We assist companies with all aspects of the food industry, ranging from initial product inception and formulation through manufacturing and go-to-market strategies.

· Author & Educator: Along with my partners, I co-authored the book "Food Business, Idea to Reality"—a comprehensive guide on how to bring food products to market—and co-created Launchafoodproduct.com, an online learning platform with a library of videos and entrepreneurial tools for food entrepreneurs.

Decades of Pastry & Baking R&D

My deepest expertise lies in the science, formulation, and business of commercial baking. I have spent decades working on product development, procurement, and large-scale production logistics.

· 10+ Years of R&D at Food Startup Help: For over a decade, I have worked with the pastry and baking research and development branch of our consulting firm, troubleshooting commercial formulations and scaling recipes for mass production.

· 9 Years Operating My Own Wholesale Bakery: Built, owned, and successfully operated a commercial wholesale bakery business from the ground up for nearly a decade, managing everything from production scaling to client fulfillment.

· Chief Product Officer at RAIZE: Led total product development, procurement, and production for this innovative gluten-free, no-sugar-added, low-carb baking company alongside Founder Zach Ranen.

· Business Development & Growth: Served as the Business Development Officer for BDR Bakery Corp., managing the product line growth for a multi-generational baking company as it transitioned into a new production facility, with a heavy focus on launching and scaling online and wholesale sales.

· Executive Pastry Chef: Directed the kitchens and R&D for a retail bakery with multiple stores and wholesale division.

The Journey: Roots, Education, & Global Training

· The Entrepreneurial Launchpad: Just months after graduating from culinary school, I jumped into the deep end by building, owning, and operating a from-scratch, 80-seat restaurant. This firsthand operational grind served as the direct launching pad for my 9-year wholesale bakery venture.

· International Craftsmanship: To deepen my understanding of the technical side of pastry and baking, I traveled abroad to further my skills with advanced culinary courses in France and Switzerland.

· Curriculum Developer & Educator: I spent 20 years teaching in culinary schools, where I specialized in the development of entire pastry and baking curricula from the ground up. This background led to my role as the Program Director and Lead Instructor for the Professional Pastry and Baking Arts Program at the Institute of Culinary Education (ICE). There, I managed a large team of Chef Instructors, taught incoming students, and advised alumni on navigating their careers and food businesses.

· Capital Consulting: To ensure the startups I worked with could actually get off the ground, I also founded Z Commercial Capital, a financial brokerage company helping food brands find the capital they need for launch and early growth stages.

Ready to start a new food business? Check out Food Startup Help's

entrepreneur tools 

 We help clients all over the country start  new food-related businesses and turn around food operations that are experiencing challenging issues. Contact us.