Richard Branson and Luke Mangan have announced the next phase of the Inspired Series which is designed to inspire and enable entrepreneurship, leadership and knowledge throughout the next generation of hospitality workers.
September marks the five year anniversary of the partnership between Branson’s airline, Virgin Australia and the Luke Mangan Group, and to kick off the celebrations, Branson and Mangan announced that the Inspire Series will be expanding throughout Australia over the next 12 months.
“The most successful people have fallen over…it’s all about learning from that and not giving up …You have to continuously reinvent yourself to ultimately come through the other end,” said Branson at a press conference in Sydney on 8 September.
The Series was initially developed in collaboration with Sydney TAFE and Luke Mangan in 2015 to provide kitchen skill sessions for commercial cookery students, hosted by some of Australia’s leading chefs.
Through the partnership, TAFE NSW has been able to give students and young talent access to relationships that the Luke Mangan Group holds with leading national and international hospitality professionals as well as the group’s major brand partners. The second phase of the Series will see the program become avaliable to TAFE students nationwide over the next 12 months.
“The goal of the Inspired Series is to help shift how the hospitality industry is perceived. We want to stop people seeing it as just a vocation and more of a rewarding and varied career path” says Mangan.
“These days, it’s no longer just about the chef. From sommeliers, to suppliers, to general managers, accountants, F&B directors and marketers – there are a number of moving parts and positions that work together as a team to create a successful restaurant or hospitality business. There is a huge amount of choice within the hospitality industry and I want to provide young people the opportunity and access to learn about this and be inspired.”
Mangan will also be launching a community kitchen garden at Sydney TAFE to promote understanding and knowledge around Australian produce and local suppliers.