Meet Slavica Park of Comal Heritage Food Incubator in RiNo

Today we’d like to introduce you to Slavica Park.

Thanks for sharing your story with us Slavica. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I started at Focus Points Family Resource Center in 2016 as the Director of Education and Economic Development. I had a background in workforce development from a previous job and within a month I realized I would need to take a different approach. I came to this realization after a meeting with a group of women that had been trying to launch their own small businesses in the food industry. They asked me to help secure a commissary kitchen and three months later we launched Comal. It was truly a response to the need of the community. I didn’t have experience in the hospitality industry, but I am entrepreneurial and I just felt that we needed to make it happen. I also met the Zeppelin family (Zeppelin Development) and they had the vacant space and helped connect me with the right experts to make it all happen quickly.

Since opening, we have tripled our revenue and have made a tremendous economic impact on the program’s participants. We operate under an “earn while you learn” philosophy and we have given more than $600,000 to our participants, helped two women start food truck businesses, and helped eight women secure their catering licenses.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Nothing about this process has been smooth but it’s been worth it. We’re a social enterprise operating in a very complicated and risky industry and we’ve had our fair share of challenges. The biggest challenge we face is balancing our training program while also being a consumer-facing business. We always want the program participants to continuously progress while working to keep our customers happy so we can continue growing the program.

Please tell us about Comal Heritage Food Incubator.
Comal is a complex social enterprise owned by Focus Points Family Resource Center but I like to think of it as a place of magic. Food is one of those things that transcends everything and connects everyone. Comal is a place of training and a customer facing restaurant and it’s also become a place for cross-cultural exchange, where people can connect, learn and understand the different communities within Denver.

I am most proud of the growth we see in our participants. Through the program, they really come out of their shells, feel empowered and realize that they have something to offer the world. For me personally, Comal has been the most fulfilling project I’ve been involved with and I cannot wait to see where it can go.

Pricing:

• Lunch prices range from $10-15

Contact Info:

• Address: 3455 Ringsby Court #105 (541.20 mi)
  Denver, Colorado 80216
• Website: https://www.focuspoints.org/comal
• Phone: (303) 292-0770
• Email: info@focuspoints.org
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/comal_heritagefoodincubator
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/comalkitchen/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/focuspoints
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/comal-heritage-food-incubator-denver

Image Credit:
Comal Heritage Food Incubator

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