Cheryl Cordier has been a leading advocate for chefs in New Zealand, and spearheaded the formation of the International Culinary Studio.
As a child, Cheryl Cordier wanted to be a teacher. She first entered the hospitality industry at the age of 15, when she worked as a waitress at a local hotel.
Soon discovering that this was her passion, she applied for an apprenticeship programme through a hotel group. She graduated three years later with a diploma in hotel management, and became a Deputy General Manager at the age of 21.
At 22, Cordier decided to open her own business and started Country Catering, an events catering company. She sold this when she was 28 and took up work for an education provider.
This was the start of her journey combining her two greatest passions, teaching and hospitality.
She worked for a few different providers, starting out as a lecturer, then head of department, and later head of sales and National Sales Manager. In her role as head of a vocational division of programmes, she decided it was time to start her own business again.
She founded Capsicum Culinary Studio, transforming her home kitchen into the largest cooking school in South Africa. After 14 years, she was able to sell this to a listed company, which coincided with her move to New Zealand.
“I was still passionate about chef education and wanted to reach people that could not access Face to Face classes,” said Cordier.
This led to, after an enormous amount of global research, the formation of the International Culinary Studio.
The most important advice that Cordier has received is that as one door closes, another one opens.
“My dad always said don’t stay where you are not happy.”
Cordier has had many mentors over the years, and has read many autobiographies from exceptional business people, taking what she wants from each one.
She said hospitality has always been a male-dominated industry, and unfortunately, it has a history of treating its employees really badly.
“This has certainly improved now and it great to see so many amazing successful female chefs.”
She added that chefs are now more aware of creating a better work/life balance for employees. In the education arena, going from traditional face-to-face teaching to the online space has been a tough journey.
A prime example of how things have changed since online learning emerged has been the frequently asked question, “How can you measure taste online?”
“The answer lies in the fact that at the level we teach online, we are teaching skills and techniques, and when someone follows a recipe correctly, the flavour should be the same.”
In the future, Cordier would like to see more support for employees’ mental health.
“Personally, I believe everyone working in a kitchen should have a qualification, Food Safety as an absolute minimum. I would like to know when eating out that my food has been prepared by someone who knows what they are doing and has kept hygiene and safety as a priority.”
Throughout her career, highlights that stand out include winning numerous awards, being a finalist for Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year 2011, being invited to attend Harvard and Stanford Business Schools, when, previously, she had never been to university before, and launching a globally recognised online culinary college where there are more international accreditations than any other college in the world.
Training and educating chefs, and watching people’s lives transform so they can be proud of their achievements, continues to motivate Cordier.
“They stand taller, they talk louder, and their lives are changed forever for the better.”
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