Interesting article, in that it makes some interesting statements:
"They know they can make a very good living as a chef," Dundas said. "It's something they can make a good living doing locally."
The most recent data, released in May 2006, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics indicated there were eight chefs and head cooks in the Corpus Christi Metropolitan area who averaged about $31,500 a year. In the region, which encompasses four states, the average was about $35,100, about $3,700 less than the national average."
They start with the pay of a chef, but most newly trained culinary graduates end up in prep-stations or as line cooks, entry level and much lower pay than a "Chef".
BTW, $31,500 equals bewteen $9 and $10 hour. Good Living?
Then the article jumps to:
"For those ambitious, talented and lucky enough to get exposure, the annual earnings could be much higher. Emeril Lagasse earned $9 million and Rachael Ray earned $16 million in 2007, according to Forbes magazine."
Instead, they should continue with the first train of thought. How many thousands of restaurants open and close with 1 year?, 2 years?
How long is a cook out of work between jobs?, a Chef?
What are the real world relocation requirements in the cooking profession?
Even looking at the millionaire chefs, (Puck, Keller, Vongerichten, Boulud, Batali, Lagasse, etc). Where did they have to work, and for how long, before they even started to "make it"? Look at their resumes, all over the world and sometimes moving every 2 or 3 years. Sounds glamorous, lives not so glamorous.
The millionaire chef is a one in a million opportunity and it's not just made up of ambitiousness, talent and luck. The right place, the right time and years of hard (12 to 16 hour days) work. The you can put luck and ambition into the equation.
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Clove |