Female-led pub aims to help women find hospitality jobs

A new female-led pub has opened in the UK with the aim of training women in hospitality, supporting parents coming back to work and shaking up a male-dominated industry. Flowerhouse, in Marylebone, London, will offer apprenticeships and training schemes for women hoping to become head chefs and general managers, with flexible working hours encouraged for mothers returning to work.

It was launched by Jo Jackson, the former chief creative officer of the furniture retailer Made, with help from two Shoreditch bar owners. Jackson said while anybody will be allowed to apply for a job at her new pub, women “of all ages” and from “all backgrounds” will be the focus as she looks to change perceptions in the hospitality sector.

Jackson said, “Our aim is to be inclusive and I want to highlight the fact this is a male-dominated industry and women don’t hold enough senior positions.

“I want to create a space where women are encouraged to apply for top jobs. It’s about supporting that and creating a more diverse industry in every way.

“Women have traditionally been bartenders and men have owned pubs. A lot has changed over the years, but not enough.”

A recent report by PwC found women hold just 30% of senior positions in hospitality, while UKHospitality also identified more should be done to improve the gender balance.

Jackson also said that the Flowerhouse will not only be a training ground for new talent, but a “safe space” for women to drink in.

“I grew up near this pub and never felt comfortable going in on my own,” she said. “Men can go and sit or stand at the bar and have a quiet drink and expect to be left alone. If a woman goes to the pub and sits on her own, chances are a man is going to hit on you in my experience.

“The culture is different for men and women, and I’d like to help change that. We don’t just want to go to coffee shops.”

Training in hospitality opens a number of job opportunities, including within the superyacht industry. There is clear precedent of women seeking jobs in the superyacht industry, and this initiative could see that trend continue.

Check out our Women in Yachting interviews and hear from some of the industry’s inspirational women.

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