Skift Global Forum Preview: Saira Teaches Luxury Hospitality Skills for the Real World
Photo Credit: A Saira Hospitality pop-up in the British Virgin Islands included a variety of courses on luxury hospitality skills. Saira Hospitality
Skift Take
Training the next generation of luxury hotel employees may require more than the old-fashioned schooling that's been in place for decades.
Luxury hospitality education is ready for an overhaul, according to Harsha Chanrai, CEO of Saira Hospitality. The three-year-old nonprofit creates pop-up schools to educate underserved local community members for employment in the industry, so far in Mexico and the British Virgin Islands, with Namibia coming up this fall.
"There’s a big gap between hospitality education and hospitality operation," said Chanrai. Her goal is to turn the old model on its head: Instead of teaching broad concepts from a distance, she wants to hone in on specific skills that a particular brand like Bunkhouse Group needs from its staff. Teachers with real-world experience are key, as opposed to "pure teachers who have never really stepped foot into a lifestyle or luxury hotel."
While the excitement of luxury hospitality may be strong for many students, the struggle is helping them attend class consistently when they have serious socioeconomic challenges in their daily lives. Reducing the program’s 1
