The international market is very ripe for high quality service. But which kind?…
BRUSSELS—The white gloves are on in the fight to serve the growing ranks of the superrich.
New academies for domestic staff are opening doors world-wide, while existing schools are busier than ever. But as the market for talent booms, some established types are fretting about the upstarts and their newfangled ways.
“I've been fighting against the many, many charlatans in this business forever, and I will do so for the rest of my life,” says Robert Wennekes, chief executive of The International Butler Academy. “There are too many out there who claim that they're butlers when they're not.”
Vincent Vermeulen, a former butler himself, sees things differently. He recently set up the School for Butlers and Hospitality in Brussels. The outfit's four-week course, as outlined on its website, aims to “prepare students to face challenges of the modern international household.”
via Schools Tussle Over Proper Training for Butlers – WSJ.com.