Can you start a new business ( private cooking classes) in Asheville, nc

I have an acquaintance who recently relocated there, she's an entrepreneur also but has a full-time job at the moment. I'm not sure about the status of her business. If I recall correctly her partner is also an entrepreneur. Unfortunately I have no idea how well they're doing. Here are a couple of links/organisations that hopefully can provide you with more information about entrepreneurship in Asheville: http://www1.abtech.edu/sbc http://www.ashevillechamber.org/economic-development/small-business-and-entrepreneurship http://www.bestplaces.net/col/ http://www.coli.org/ (fee-based) Good luck!

It's hard to make a living there, lots of people on food stamps right now. I'd link you to info, but I'm on my cell phone. Also, the weather in the mountains is the worst in the state. Dangerous driving in the winter if you don't have 4x4 drive, humid beyond all hell summers, and bad for your allergies most of the year. Teaching cooking classes is far more likely to succeed than being a private chef because the money mainly comes into Asheville through tourism. You might consider visiting for a month before moving there just because I'm giving you this advice as a 23 year old who grew up in that area. I always say that Asheville is a fantastic place to visit, but a horrible place to live.

I read your other thread and seeing your thoughts on Texas also made me wonder about how great a fit Asheville would be for you. Not because Asheville isn't a liberal place, but because 20 minutes out of town on the way to Asheville from Chapel Hill, there's a giant North Carolina Tea Party bill board

Hi there, I have a close relative in Hendersonville, NC which is about 30 minutes away from Asheville. My concern with you moving to Asheville is that I'm not sure that the weather is dramatically different from Connecticut. They get snow, it gets cold. It might be less humid in the summer because of the mountains but I don't know for sure. That said, the cost of living is definitely cheaper than in the northeast and the general ambiance of the area is different as well. It seems like a mix of young and old, northern and southern. My question is, who do you see as your potential customers? Do older folks moving to the area to retire take cooking classes? Do they cook? Tourists might take cooking classes but they're mostly interested in the Biltmore. If they did take a cooking class, they would likely want something like southern cooking. I don't know what kind of chef you are but I guess I'm saying that fancy French nine course meals did not seem that appealing to people. I would definitely spend more time there before making a decision. I know lots of people who love the area but it's not for everyone. What about visiting for a month or so? I also don't see a huge reason to buy a house immediately - I'd encourage you to consider renting for a little while just to be sure it's a good fit before getting a mortgage.

Have you thought about moving to a different country? Why not cater to tourists in the Caribbean for example.

I wouldn't start a new business, in a new town, without a very strong, existing network. I'd say that you might have better luck checking with restaurants as a "fill-in" chef, rather than starting your own business. As I'm sure you're aware, lots of chefs are kind of flakey, and/or might want to take a week off to go on vacation. You could hire yourself out as a sub, giving you flexibility to work when you want to, and rest when you don't. Or perhaps see if you can do https://re21.ultipro.com/BIL1001/JobBoard/JobDetails.aspx?__ID=*FEB30B090B853776 (which might be more your thing.) This might be a spring-board to offer ad-hoc cooking classes/demonstrations on the side, perhaps as an activity through the Biltmore, http://www.biltmore.com/culinary-vacations/ I'd want to start out with a steady job, with a decent paycheck and perhaps benefits, once you've settled in, you can see about branching out and doing your own thing. In the south you have to find and enjoy your pockets of liberalism. Asheville is as good a place as any for this. (I have Decatur, GA) Asheville is known to be more expensive than other parts of NC, but it's a lot nicer than CT in the winter. That much, I know.

The Triangle area (Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill) also has a great food scene and much better job prospects. The weather is also much, much more temperate - I have a volunteer gig I do in the mountains every April and it always fascinates me how it is still winter there when we've had trees full of leaves here in Raleigh for a month already.

Dangerous driving in the winter if you don't have 4x4 drive, humid beyond all hell summers Wow, I grew up in Asheville too and hardly recognize this description (or others in this thread). We never even had AC, the summers were so mild (very little humidity), and cheered wildly at a dusting of snow because school would definitely be called off. Also, if OP is from Connecticut, spring will come plenty soon in Asheville... I live in NY now and they're at least a month ahead of us every year. I know cost of living has gone way up and have no idea about starting a business there these days so won't comment on that. But just wanted to say that, climate-wise, I think Asheville would be a nice change from Connecticut. (Hello, Winter Storm Nemo!)

One more thing, privatechef, if you would consider going back to being a private chef, or supplementing with that, I bet there would be a market. Asheville has lots of retirees and lots of wealth (in certain areas).