Building yet further on our Wine & Spirit Education Trust APP status and the booming side of our business in providing Wine Training for Yacht Crew, we have started an exciting new partnership with a dynamic young Crew Placement & Training company, Cosmo Crew based right on the port at Marina Baie des Anges, Villeneuve Loubet.

As usual it was the incredible networking chain down here on the
Riviera that led us to Cosmo – someone saw a posting on Anglo Info about one of our Wine Tasting Events earlier in the year and promptly booked themselves on our inaugural “Fun Wine 4 Women” event in April. Meeting and talking with Sally, led to the discovery that she shares office space with Cosmo and that we “really ought to come down and meet them”. From a totally different direction comes the same “hot tip” and introduction from Anna of The Galley Shop (one our linked Partners) that she had met the Cosmo team at their offices, seen their currently not used basement room, and advised them that it would be the perfect venue for Wine Courses and told them to get in touch with us.
Serendipity indeed!
So down to the Marina and a chat with the delightful Virna Causa of Cosmo Crew and before you know it, a deal was struck and we “test ran” a Level 1 WSET Foundation Course for some Stews on 14th May. It worked brilliantly and the ease of travel arrangements for Yachties, rather than getting them all the way up to us in Vence, was a real bonus! We reckon we can comfortably run courses for up to 6 students at Cosmo and the location on the port for a quick pre-course coffee and a choice of eateries for lunch is excellent. We will continue to offer the incredible FWW flexibility of “on board” at a time and place to suit, but that is obviously directed at existing Crew teams. The great link with Cosmo is that they have a huge pool of Yacht Crew “wannabe’s” and experienced Stews looking for new employment.
Cosmo offer specific Yacht training courses themselves at another classroom site, but have also had enquiries about Wine Courses specifically for Yachts and so the fact that they can now recommend FineWineWorks is a great boon to us. In return we have also proposed that as we are in contact with so many yachts that we refer them to Cosmo whenever it is appropriate. Small businesses working together!
P.S. We had a 100% pass rate for the course that day – so congratulations to all the candidates!
Helen Brotherton 04.05.09

Tags: wine appreciation, wine course training, WSET, yacht crew training

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