Chapter 2: What Education is Required to Become a Personal Chef?
Chapter 2: What Education is Required to Become a Personal Chef?
Now that you know what a personal chef is and does, you are probably excited about starting your new career. However, you might have assumed that many years of specialized schooling are necessary to begin working as a chef. This chapter will give you information about the formalized education you might need before getting started and what to do if you do not have this education.
Do You Need a Formalized Education?
The idea of going through several years of culinary school, racking up thousands of dollars in student loans, and trying to balance school and a career can seem daunting. The good news is that you do not have to have a culinary background or meet any educational requirements to become a personal chef. You can start your business – and your new career – with your current talents and passion for cooking.
Of course, a culinary background and education does provide you with an advantage. If you already work as a chef in a restaurant or work in the food service industry, you might find your experience advantageous. Working in the industry helps to develop contacts and build a reputation for your services. People who are already familiar with you and the quality of your work will be more likely to hire you and provide you with referrals. These contacts and referrals can fuel your business.
Another advantage a culinary background or education is the opportunity to learn the trade and refine your cooking skills. In culinary school, you will have the chance to learn more about what foods complement each other, how to improve your dishes, how to effectively alter recipes to better suit your clients, and how to better time your cooking.
Culinary school and a culinary background will also provide you with a better understanding of cooking equipment and how it is used. This knowledge can help you learn how to save time and produce products more efficiently, which will give you the capacity to serve more clients.
If you are not already working in the culinary industry, do not be discouraged. You can still build your clientele, although it could potentially take more time. Many potential clients will want references and will ask about your background. Being able to provide references and showcase your experience will provide you with more credibility and will build a greater level of confidence in your abilities.
There are several ways to build credibility without a culinary background. One way is to offer your services to friends and family for parties, weddings, and banquets. Doing so will help establish you as a personal chef – it will prove that you are capable of doing the job and will get you in front of potential clients. Once a client has tasted and had a positive experience with your product, they will have a much higher level of confidence in your services and will be more likely to hire you.
Another way to establish yourself as a personal chef is to offer cooking classes in your community. A cooking class puts you in front of potential clients who will be able to see how you work and sample your food.
A third option to establish yourself as a personal chef is to find another personal chef in your area who has a full clientele and ask for an opportunity to work as an apprentice. This will help you learn the business from someone who already has a successful business and will help build your credibility.
What Are My Culinary Education Options?
An education in culinary arts is very hands on. The best way to learn to cook and refine your skills as a chef is practice often. You will have to constantly experiment and refine your cooking skills, even after you have completed your education.
Because of the hands-on nature of a career in culinary arts, a classroom environment is still the most popular and widely available option. Classroom learning puts you in the kitchen and gives you the freedom to experiment, receive critiques, and learn to improve.
Hands-on classroom learning will also help you learn more about the equipment you will be using and how to use it properly. You will learn how to cook a variety of foods to perfection and will get a chance to experiment with types of food you might have never worked with before, thereby building your expertise and ability to cater to the customer.
Some culinary arts schools even offer a personal chef specialization that will better prepare you for the challenges of running your own business and learning to cater to your clients needs.
Many major universities now offer a culinary arts program. There are also schools that specialize in just culinary-related fields. You can find a reputable culinary arts school in your area by asking others in the industry, using the Internet, looking in the yellow pages, or inquiring about course options in culinary arts with your local university.
If classroom learning is simply not an option for you due to family obligations, work, or proximity to a university, distance-learning options are available. In today’s busy society, distance learning is becoming more readily available in most areas of study, offering you more options to choose from.
The best way to find a reputable distance learning program that will help you meet your needs is by checking with others in the industry. Choose a distance learning program that is going to give you the most comprehensive and thorough program possible. Talking to others in the culinary field who have used these distance learning programs can give you more insight into which distance learning programs will offer you the best education.
If you are brand new to the field and do not know anyone in the culinary industry, look for personal chefs in your area and see whether they would be willing to let you interview them. This will give you the opportunity to learn what education and background those who are successful in the field are obtaining and will give you a contact in the field.
Another way to find a distance learning program is to search the Internet. Be sure to read all the fine print and thoroughly check out the program offered before signing up or paying any money. You can also check with your state to see whether the program is accredited and recognized in your state.
It is important to do your research when choosing any program, especially a distance learning program. Although distance education and certification is becoming more readily available, it is still a buyer beware market.
If you start an apprenticeship with a chef who is already successful in the field, you might want to set up a cross-referral agreement with that chef. This will be especially helpful if you specialize in a specific type of cuisine. If your training chef has a full clientele, he or she may refer additional clients to your business. You can, in return, promise to offer them the same courtesy.
Although an education in culinary arts is not required to become a personal chef, having experience and education can help you build your business faster. Potential clients find chefs who have experience, education, and a proven track record to be more credible, capable, and better equipped to meet their personal needs.
The Culinary Business Academy
For many aspiring personal chefs, one of the best training programs is the Personal Chef Training program, available through the Culinary Business Academy. This program provides several options for you to obtain the training necessary to set up, start, and successfully operate your personal chef business, and avoid many of the mistakes typically made by new personal chefs.
Many new personal chefs opt for the Personal Chef Home Study Program offered by the Culinary Business Academy. This course includes the Professional Personal Chef Reference Manual, CDs that will assist you in learning to market and sell your services, and a collection of recipes that you can use as the core of your products. According to the Culinary Business Academy, this home study course can be completed in as little as two weeks; you can quickly prepare to begin your own personal chef venture. Upon completion of the course, you will have the option of taking three online tests – after successfully passing these tests, you will earn a diploma for the course and fulfill one of the requirements to become a Certified Personal Chef.
Some personal chefs find that they need training beyond that which is available through the home study course. The Culinary Business Academy also offers a 16-hour Quick Start Program, an intensive classroom training session taught by Certified Personal Chefs. This training session will give real world knowledge about the personal chef industry and allow you to get answers from people who have extensive experience providing personal chef services for clients. The Culinary Business Academy guarantees your success by refunding your tuition if you do not achieve a minimum level of business success after completing the Quick Start Program.
If a home study course is not for you, you can opt to obtain your diploma by taking the Personal Chef Undergraduate Program through the Culinary Business Academy, which is a five-day, onsite course that will give you accelerated training and help you get your personal chef business up and running quickly. The Culinary Business Academy also guarantees your success upon completion of this program.
For more information about the training programs offered by the Culinary Business Academy, visit their Web site at www.culinarybusiness.com.
Business Education and Experience
Although knowing and learning how to prepare meals that will turn your clients into long-term customers is essential to success as a personal chef, there are other types of knowledge you will need to keep your business profitable and turn your passion into a career.
An extensive understanding of business concepts will be very important. Taking business courses or pursuing a Master of Business Administration degree is one way to gain this business knowledge, but if you do not have the time or inclination to take college courses or pursue an advanced degree, there are other ways to gain the knowledge necessary to build and execute a successful business model.
One of the least expensive ways to gain all the business knowledge you will need to start and grow your business is to visit your local public library. The advantage you gain from visiting the library, other than saving thousands of dollars on books and tuition, is that you can learn practical applications as well as academic theory.
Here is a list of books that will help you understand how business works:
Regardless of whether you choose to pursue a formal business education, these books (and many others) can provide you with a strong foundation to bring your culinary skills to your community, while building a financially viable business that will support you and your family for many years to come.
Another way to gain insight into the world of business is to connect with other entrepreneurs in your area. You can obtain a wealth of knowledge about how to build a financially successful business by sitting down with people who have already built successful businesses and with people who are on the same path as you. This is an excellent way to get answers to questions you will have during your first few years as a professional personal chef.
You might be able to find local business owner groups via bulletin boards in local establishments, such as coffee shops, book stores, and other areas frequented by business owners. Do not be afraid to contact group organizers if you have questions about joining a group or attending meetings – the organizers will be happy to answer any questions you might have and help you feel comfortable with getting involved.
Business owner groups can also be excellent for networking. Once your business launches, you can provide other business owners with business cards or other promotional materials so they can pass these materials along to potential clients. Since they are probably busy building their own businesses, they might even elect to use your services themselves.
If you choose to promote your business through networking with other local business owners, be sure to offer to promote their businesses as well. This technique can work wonders for your business, especially if you are able to help your fellow business owners along the way.
Networking can also be a good way to learn where to obtain supplies at wholesale costs. If there are restaurant owners or other food service professionals in your group, they might be able to tell you where to obtain cooking equipment and ingredients at a discount, which can improve your profit margin. Other types of business professionals might help you save money on advertising materials, transportation, or other expenses you will incur as a result of doing business.
If there are several business owners who need similar types of materials or services, such as mailing, advertising, or insurance, you might be able to pool your financial resources with those of other business owners to obtain an even greater discount.
If you cannot find a business owners’ group via a public bulletin board, you can try using www.meetup.com to find groups in your area. Signing up on this Web site is a quick and simple process, and you can find all available groups in your area within a matter of minutes. You will also find out when and where these groups meet and whether there are any membership dues or other costs to join and attend meetings.
If there are no available business owners’ groups, you can start one on MeetUp. It is likely that there are other business owners in your area who could greatly benefit from attending meetings with other business owners, but have not taken the initiative to start a group. Starting a group on MeetUp costs $20, but this small fee can be well worth the benefits that you and the other business owners in your area will receive from networking and brainstorming sessions.
Now that you have learned about your education options, how to use any culinary experience you might have to your advantage, how to learn the business skills necessary to make your personal chef venture a success, and how to break into the personal chef business if you do not have education or experience to rely upon, let us move on to the first and most important step you will need to take to begin your career as a personal chef – creating and developing a business plan.