Hello and Welcome!
It's February and the days are
thankfully getting longer. For the
students enrolled in the Winter Session of the Academy, their days have been
busy and chock o block full of the sort of useful information that will serve
them well in their future positions.
We've just passed the midway point, the
students have written their midterms and I'm feeling good about the class. I've
mentioned in previous newsletters how much I love to teach. The truth is
teaching is made easy when students are so eager to learn... And this class is
definitely eager!
In the upcoming months I will be
traveling for training assignments to Europe, Asia and I will be making my very first trip to Africa,
about which I'm very excited. I
promise to keep everyone posted with lots of "tweets" as well as video posts to
our blog The Butler Speaks; so stay tuned.
As always, thank-you for your
support and I hope you enjoy this month's newsletter.
Charles
MacPherson
Founder
& President
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Preparing for Spring Session of the Academy
As we near the end of the winter session we
are gearing up for or spring session which commences April 12th for
an 8 week period. We look forward
to assisting our winter session graduates with securing placements in either
private homes or premier hospitality establishments.
As our Academy is registered as a private
career college with the Ontario Ministry of Training, Universities and Colleges
this allows prospective students to seek tuition assistance from various
lending institutions. Our students
tell us that they are pleased with the supply and quality of accommodation in
the downtown Toronto area. Our
Academy is easily accessible by transit.
We continue to offer individual courses at
the Academy and are pleased that many clients and candidates continue to avail
themselves of this option.
Contact us now to secure your seat! (416) 369-1146
Course Schedule
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China set to become top luxury market
BEIJING,
Jan 21 (Reuters) - China will become the world's biggest luxury market in five
to seven years as consumers see incomes grow along with sustained appetite for
high-end brands despite the recent economic downturn, a survey said on
Thursday.
Read more...
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Food & Drink Pairing Goes 3.0 at The Butler Speaks
 Toronto, January 12, 2010 - Which wine tastes best with pork chops in a maple glaze? Does rosemary-marinated grilled halibut invite red or white wine? Are there also great food pairings for beer, spirits, cocktails, coffee and tea?
To answer these questions and thousands more, the web site NatalieMacLean.com now offers a new Drinks Matcher widget, a portable version of the site's existing food-and-wine pairing tool. You can also find the widget on our blog The Butler Speaks.
"The variety of food-and-drink combinations has exploded in the last five years," says Natalie MacLean, publisher of Canada's largest wine e-newsletter. "Chicken isn't just chicken anymore: Now we eat it stuffed with pancetta and fresh herbs, rubbed with curry spices or sautéed in an orange balsamic sauce. We're looking for more interesting flavours, both on the plate and in the glass-and we want them to work together."
During the eight years that Natalie spent testing the combinations for her Drinks Matcher, she found two extremes when it comes to food and wine pairing: "Some people say that it's complete nonsense, while others insist that there's only one perfect match for every wine. Neither approach helps wine lovers."
"People want some guidance, even though the pairings are subjective. It all comes down to balancing flavours and textures. I'm a thoroughly hedonistic researcher. Of the thousands of combinations I tried, some were delicious, others were a disaster. I share the ones that worked in the Drinks Matcher."
You can search the matcher for drinks to pair with meat, pasta, seafood, vegetarian dishes, pizza, take-out, sauces, herbs, cheese or dessert; or you can find dishes to go with wine, cocktails, liqueurs, beer, spirits, cider, coffee, tea-and yes, even water. The Drinks Matcher is meant to be a springboard to help you discover the matches you prefer. The perfect pairing, of course, is between you and the wine you like.
Here are Natalie's top 10 fun food and wine matches:
1. Popcorn with Chilean Chardonnay
2. Nachos with California Zinfandel
3. Potato chips with French Champagne
4. Pizza with Italian Chianti
5. Fish and chips with German Riesling
6. Hamburgers with Australian Shiraz
7. Smoked salmon with Canadian or Oregon Pinot Noir
8. Quiche with New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc
9. Canned brown beans with tawny Port
10. TV dinner steak with French or Washington Cabernet Sauvignon
The Butler SpeaksNatalieMacLean.com |
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Flower Power at the Academy
Bert Browne of Earthwork is a
good friend, florist extraordinaire and instructor at the Academy. He
recently instructed the students in flower arranging and plant care.
The idea behind the one-day flower arranging class is to give the
students sufficient knowledge to equip them to perform basic flower
arranging for their employers.
As with the other classes in the 8-week
Butler and Household Manager program, the emphasis is on the
development of a good practical skill set... It doesn't hurt to get to work with beautiful things either!
Course Outline
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Cross Training & Household Management
House Managers can attest that at any single moment on any single day they are required to wear
as many different hats as found in a milliner's shop. Becoming "master of one's
domain" requires that house managers have working knowledge in such diverse
areas as household mechanicals, human resources, vinology, event planning and
management, administration, basic cooking, table service and setting, childcare
and so much more.
In my experience house managers
who excel at their jobs are naturally curious individuals who soak up information
around them like sponges. They ask pertinent questions of trades. They stay on
top of labour regulations for domestic workers. They are always on the lookout
for strategies to keep their staff motivated to do a good job. They identify
the specific interests or hobbies of their principals and they educate
themselves accordingly. They are omnivorous readers who read magazines in order
to stay on top of trends in food, wine, design and décor.
In a private company this sort of
skills improvement and acquisition is accomplished through cross-training
initiatives. Cross-training can improve productivity, increase employee
motivation and provide employees with respect and understanding for co-workers.
In private service, it is largely
left up to the individual house manager to pro-actively educate themselves in
all the areas that add value to their service to a household. Where other
household staff is concerned a house manager can take the initiative to have
staff members cross-trained. I used to make a concerted effort in staff
meetings to have my staff describe their responsibilities to each other and
what they do through the course of a day. It was a great exercise in team building
and made my staff feel good about their contributions to the household.
Essentially cross-training is
about sharing information and that's always a good thing.
Training Programs
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Chef Matt's Heart Healthy
Moroccan Lamb Tagine
We are very
proud to have Chef Matt Binkley on our staff and team at the Academy. Although we fully recognize that it is
impossible to provide a complete culinary training in such a short period of
time, Chef Matt is a great leader and teacher for students. His specialty is teaching the skill set
needed for household managers to cope with situations such as a chef's day off
and or how to successfully communicate between the front and back of the house.
In this month's newsletter Chef Matt is serving up a healthy and delicious recipe for Moroccan Lamb Tagine. Recipe Linkwww.mattbinkley.com. |
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Etiquette & Protocol for Today
A
well-crafted thank-you note, a properly executed introduction and the perfect
manners of a well-liked dinner guest are as relevant today as they were in more
formal times. Whether it's a social or business setting, good etiquette and
protocol skills are always noticed and definitely valued.
The
renowned Charles MacPherson Academy for Butlers and Household Managers is
offering classes on Etiquette and
Protocol.
A
graduate of the distinguished Protocol School of Washington takes participants
through the history and evolution of etiquette and protocol.
Those
attending will learn everything from making proper introductions, the order of
precedence, forms of address, correct correspondence, invitations, menu cards
as well as table manners.
Participants
vary from those seeking to upgrade their skills for business reasons, employers
who would like to polish an employee's skills to those who simply have a
general interest in the subject matter and welcome the opportunity to be
instructed by an expert in the field.
Date: April 15 - 19, 2010 · Price: $250
per day · Register: (416) 369-1146
Course Outline
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The Butler Speaks
 Come visit us at our blog "The Butler Speaks" for the latest in Butler News.
We have changed the permissions on the blog for posting comments and asking questions. Readers will no longer require a Google account to post.
Remember, we love lots of questions and always do our best to answer them all.
The Butler Speaks
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Join us on Twitter
 Now you can follow what is happening at butler school by joining us on Twitter. We have doubled our followers in this past week alone! We hope to see you and look forward to following your tweets too!
You can find us easily with this Twitter Blog Link or follow us @butlerschool if you already have an account.
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Charles MacPherson Associates
Charles MacPherson Associates Inc. has over twelve years
experience in the luxury residential market and the luxury hospitality
market. We have four complementary lines of business:
* Advisory & Consulting
* Training
* Placement
* Academy
Today we would like to highlight The Charles MacPherson Academy for Butlers and Household Managers, which is a certified Private Career College located in Toronto, Canada. We teach those individuals seeking to enter the world of service,
individuals seeking to upgrade their skills, and employers who wish to
enrol their staff for specific skills development.
info@charlesmacpherson.com
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Contact Information
Toronto:507 King Street East Suite 100 Toronto, Ontario, M5A 1M3 CANADA (416) 369-1146 office (416) 369-1743 facsimile New York:134 West 82 Street Suite 3B New York, New York 10024 United States (212) 877-6962 office (917) 441-0064 facsimile
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Clothing &
Valet Care 101
Clothing & Valet Care 101 (2 days) This course will include
fashion, colours, understanding designers, how men's and ladies clothes are
made, understanding the difference between ready to wear, made to measure and
couture, learning how to correctly build a gentleman's and lady's closet.
- Suitcase
Packing
- Suitcase
Unpacking
- Packing
for Employers
- Caring
for Furs
- Leather
/ Suede Shoe Care
Course Schedule
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Housekeeping 101
& 201
Housekeeping 101 (2 days)
One of the most important classes begins with a lecture on understanding the
importance of light, temperature and humidity and how it affects the household
and furnishings. Additionally the class covers dealing with spills, safe
cleaning techniques, tools, reviewing different surfaces, furniture pieces and
how to correctly clean a room, bed making and including turn down service.
Housekeeping 201 (3 days)
Hands on classes learning to correctly clean bathrooms, bedrooms, how to
appoint guest rooms, guest bathrooms and then all of the different methods of
suitcase packing and unpacking from clothing, make-up, shoes and dealing with
dirty items and finally long term clothing storage. Course Schedule
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Table Setting
& Service 101
Table Setting & Service (3 days)
A hands-on class includes learning different utensils, china, glassware for
service and dining. We proceed on to table setting table space calculation and
the different methods of table setting from around the world, as well as
understanding the types of table service, napkin folding and the order of
service chart. This course is at least 50% hands on.
Course Schedule
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Laundry 101
Laundry 101 (3 Days) Understanding the laundry symbols chart, how to correctly use a washer and dryer, preparing clothes for the wash, dealing with stains, ironing, folding of laundry and linens, using a mangle machine correctly, steaming ball gowns, mending buttons dealing with dry cleaning and dying dark clothes. All of this and more is done in our Miele Sponsored Laundry facility at our Academy, the only one of its kind in the world! Course Schedule
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Butlering Skills
101
Butler Skills 101 (1 Day)
A professional butler teaches butler traits, code of ethics and then
traditional items such as ironing a newspaper, answering the door, making
coffee, making tea, dealing with different kinds of coffee such as espresso,
cappuccino, latté etc. and finally setting the perfect fireplace.
Butler Skills 201 (1 Day)
This class goes to the next level of service including tray service how butlers
manage household and difficult situations within the household and dealing with
employer demands. Course Schedule
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Household Management 101 & 201
Household Management 101 (2 days) This class delves into
the business aspects of household management beginning with abbreviations of
the industry, managing household inventories, procedures, manuals, petty cash,
and general best practices for a successful over-all household management
structure. Know your target audience. Who are your most important clients or
prospects, and why?
Household Management 201 (2 Days) This advanced level covers household
management issues at the highest level. Attention will be paid to managing
large-scale estates and families with multiple properties, large numbers of
staff and guests and family members with high profiles. Common problems and
issues one typically encounters will be addressed. Course Schedule
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Household Mechanicals 101
Mechanicals 101 (1 Day)
An expert from the service industry assist students to understand complexities
of a modern household's operating systems and the need for engaging the right
professionals to ensure that the systems run properly. Course Schedule
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