By implementing GastroNet we aimed to strengthen the employability and professional stability of VET learners in gastronomy by adding a coherent set of competences in sales and customer acquisition supported by new technologies and the Internet. We wanted to build a shared, evidence-based understanding of needs by exchanging experience within the partnership and by conducting desk research, focus work and competency mapping. On this basis, the objective was to develop an innovative training concept and translate it into concrete, reusable learning resources covering entrepreneurship, marketing, e-commerce, social media in gastronomy, sales techniques and customer service. A further objective was to support educators with materials that are practical and adaptable to different school settings, while remaining aligned with labour-market expectations. Finally, we aimed to ensure wide accessibility and uptake by publishing the outputs via an online platform and supporting dissemination beyond the partner organisations, including to stakeholders connected with VET and the gastronomy sector.
We applied for GastroNet because vocational education and training in gastronomy does not fully reflect how the sector attracts customers and sells services today: through digital channels, online visibility and internet-based ordering. In many workplaces—especially small and medium enterprises—there is no dedicated marketing function, so employees are expected to support promotion, sales and customer acquisition as part of daily operations. Schools and training centres often lack a structured, practice-oriented offer that connects sales and customer service with e-commerce, social media communication and other online tools used in gastronomy. The pandemic period confirmed that the ability to operate online is not an optional add-on but a condition of business continuity. Therefore, the partnership addressed a skills gap among VET learners and a parallel need among educators for ready-to-use, modern materials that can be implemented consistently across countries. This need was visible in partners’ daily practice and in the expectations expressed by local labour markets.