Guide · September 2026 · 3 min read

When to Start Building Your Press: The Honest Timeline for Chefs Going Abroad

The most common mistake is starting too late. Here is how long real media coverage actually takes, and when to begin if a move or a work visa is on your horizon.

Almost everyone who comes to me about press is three months too late. They have an offer, a filing date, or a move, and they need a year of coverage in a few weeks. It does not work that way, and anyone who tells you it does is not being honest with you.

So here is the real timeline. Not the sales version.

Month zero: the groundwork nobody sees

Before a single pitch goes out, there is unglamorous work. Deciding your angle. Fixing what a stranger finds when they search your name. Getting your LinkedIn and Instagram to a state a journalist would take seriously. This takes two to four weeks, and it is the part everyone wants to skip. Skip it and your pitches land on an empty profile, which kills them before they start.

Months one to three: the first placements

Real coverage moves slowly at the start. You are building a media list, writing pitches, and waiting. Editors are busy. A yes often takes weeks, and publication takes weeks more. In a good first quarter you might land two or three genuine pieces. That is normal. It is a foundation, not a finish line.

Months four to nine: momentum

This is where it compounds. One real feature makes the next easier, because now you have something to point to. Coverage begets coverage. By month six or nine, a search for your name returns a story instead of silence. This is the window where a portfolio finally starts to look like a portfolio.

Why a visa makes the timeline urgent

If a US or Canada route is part of your plan, the arithmetic gets sharp. These applications rest on a documented record built over time, not a burst assembled the week before filing. Sustained coverage reads as real. A sudden cluster reads as manufactured. If your target filing is eighteen months out, you are early, which is exactly right. If it is three months out, we can still do useful work, but I will be honest with you about what is realistic. None of this decides your visa. Your lawyer handles the case. Press only strengthens how you are seen.

The one rule

Start before you need it. The best time was a year ago. The second best time is this week. Every month you wait is a month of coverage you cannot buy back when the deadline arrives.

I am a freelancer who helps chefs and professionals build this the right way, on a real timeline. You can see how I work at Press.

This article is general information, not legal advice. For any visa petition, work with a licensed immigration attorney.