 Magnums consultancy
builds on the knowledge,
experience and reputation
of Josephine
Ive, who established
Australia's first butler
training programme in
1988. This followed extensive
experience in all aspects
of the hospitality industry
in England, culminating
in the position of Butler
to High Court Judges
with the Lord Chancellors
Department.
To try to reduce Josephine
Ive's colourful culinary
career into a profile
of a page or two is
rather akin to attempting
to condense the recipe
for a pot au feu to
couple of paragraphs.
Because this lively
English-born lady,
who's been resident
in Australia since
1987, is a lady butler,
an internationally-recognised
expert on the elegant
art of table napkin
folding, an in-store
demonstrator at stores
including Myer in Melbourne
and Harrods and Selfridges
in London, a professional
cookery instructor,
a trainer and judge
in the hospitality
industry, a food writer
for Australian and
international magazines
and a successful author.
Josephine's background
started with a four-year
apprenticeship in Catering
with the Hampshire County
Council in Winchester,
England, during which
she gained two City and
Guilds hotel and catering
qualifications. She graduated
to supervisory positions
with the HCC, studied
another City and Guilds
course, gained her Further
Education Teacher's Certificate
and worked as a catering
supervisor in a hospital,
freelance chef and restaurant
manager before starting
her own business in 1975
as a freelance chef,
caterer and butler.
Here, Josephine was
following something of
a family tradition, as
her father had been a
butler/valet after World
War II. The business
quickly became very successful,
with Josephine cooking
on occasions for the
Royal Family, including
the Queen and the Queen
Mother, and working as
a lady butler for the
High Court Judges in
their lodgings in Winchester
and Exeter.
But as any good cook
says, 'variety is the
spice of life', and Josephine soon
had her creative fingers
in a number of very interesting
pies.....
Table napkin folding
demonstrations lead to
a healthy demand for
a book, and 'An Elegant
Art' resulted in 1983.
'The Finishing Touches'
followed in 1984, but
it has been her first
book that has achieved
quite amazing sales.
Now, in its tenth edition,
'An Elegant Art' has
sold well over 35,000
copies. Josephine went
on to publish her third
book in 1992, 'By Jeeves!',
an essential guide to
clothing care, valeting
and packing your suitcase.
In 2000, Josephine authored
'ACHIEVING EXCELLENCE
IN GUEST SERVICE', now
recognised as a vital
support to the hospitality
industry and her own
teaching, demonstrations
and public speaking engagements
around the world.
Josephine's writing
has also appeared in
'Taste' magazine (UK),
Australian Home Beautiful,
Inside Dining(Australia), Food
and Cookery Review(UK),
Hotelier and Caterer(South
Africa), Wine and Dine(Singapore),
and Sojourn, and more
recently she has begun
writing for the American
based magazine Style
and Taste. In 1993, she
published her first cookery
book 'Ive Indulged!';
a collection of favourite
recipes and in November
1994 published 'Your
Christmas Survival Guide!'
a great help to all those
who normally panic about
getting everything done
in time for Christmas,
so widely received, this
will most definitely
become an annual publication!
More than once a year
Josephine has spent a
month in Europe, guest
lecturing at The International
Butler Academy in The
Netherlands, speaking
to ladies groups, demonstrating
table napkin folding,
promoting Australian
produce, and generally
updating her skills and
knowledge within the
industry. She is also
in demand internationally
as a judge, and has on
several acted as one
of the invited judges
for the Salon Culinaires
and Master Bartenders
Championships in South
East Asia.
But it is as a trainer
of butlers, valets and
luxury yacht stewards
that Josephine is becoming
best known in Australia,
South East Asia and globally.
Her butler/valet program,
which trains butlers
and valets both for private
clients and five-star
hotels worldwide, is
the only one that has
been granted government
accreditation in Australia,
whilst her Luxury Yacht
Steward program prepares
students for a working
life on some of the world's
most luxurious super
yachts.
It fascinates her clients,
pupils and the media
alike, because it seems
that in this egalitarian
world of ours, some of
us are still desirous
of (or curious about)
being waited on by a
butler, others may want
to become one, and practically
all of us would love
to know what the butler
saw! But, like all
good butlers before her,
Josephine Ive would never,
ever tell....
However, Josephine is
keen to pass on her wealth
of knowledge to people
working in the industry.
The programmes she
runs are mainly based
on the style of service
that most hotels aspire
to, but find hard to
reach without the benefit
of specialised training.
Her own particular brand
of teaching is very refreshing,
she brings a blend of
humour, depth of knowledge
and some amusing anecdotes.
Her passion is good service...
a passion that is borne
out in the subjects
she teaches: Etiquette
and Manners, Body Language,
Guest Services, Valet
services including suitcase
packing, Personalised
Guest Services, In-room
dining, Food & Beverage
service, Customer Relations,
and much, much more .............
Clients that have already
benefited from Magnums
careful training include: |
