Who:

  • David Bowd of Salt Hotels
  • iStar, Master Developer of the Asbury Park waterfront

What:

In preparation for the summer reopening of Asbury Lanes, iconic 1960s bowling alley-turned music venue, Salt School will be re-introduced to the local Asbury Park community for its third year. The vigorous hospitality training program created by David Bowd of Salt Hotels in partnership with Master Developer, iStar was conceived with the goal of giving anyone in the community - of any background, experience-level, age, race, and orientation, the opportunity to receive training by the best in the business, for free. Salt School speaks to iStar's investment in the community and its residents which has gone far beyond its robust pipeline of developments with initiatives including the Summer Experience Crew, a summer program training City ambassadors. By simply answering "why do you want to attend hospitality school?" via an online form, locals are given the chance to learn from renowned hotel innovator, David Bowd of Salt Hotels, who has three decades of experience, having worked with names like Ian Schrager and Andre Balazs.

Motivated by his own humble beginnings in the industry—having no formal education and getting his start as a bellman at age 15, Bowd describes Salt School as "a movement so genuine it changed our culture." In Salt School's first year, 110 diplomas were given out and 65 graduates were hired for The Asbury Hotel, Asbury Park's first hotel in 50 years. Many graduates from the inaugural year are still part of The Asbury family today and will be moving on to supervising and management positions at Asbury Lanes this season. As a result of its success, Salt School will be carried out at all Salt properties moving forward, which include Salt House Inn, Eben House and The Chequit.

Bowd, who also serves as a Principal of west elm Hotels, is bringing the Salt School concept to the new brand with the launch of west elm Hotels Academy. The training program will be executed during hotel launches slated for 2019 in more than 10 cities including Detroit, Minneapolis and Oakland.

This year, Salt School is looking to accept two hundred Asbury Park applicants, expanding on past years, and will employee a quarter of graduates at Asbury Lanes. School will culminate with a formal graduation and job fair which was added this year due to demand from local businesses and will allow remaining graduates the opportunity for hire and equipt local businesses with trained staff.

Industry leaders will teach students all aspects of hospitality with an added focus on food & beverage leading into the opening of Asbury Lanes this summer which will offer a 24/7, full-service diner. Founder and Chef of the internationally recognized Meatball Shop restaurants, Daniel Holzman will be one of the special guest speakers.

Curriculum focuses will include: guest service, food and beverage management, accounting, culinary and bar trends, event planning, talent and human resources management, marketing and social media.

When:

  • Application process is open from March 20-31, 2018; Salt School officially begins on April 14, 2018 and will take place every Saturday for three weeks.
  • Graduation will take place on Sunday, April 29, in time for the Asbury Lanes reopening over Memorial Day weekend.
  • In addition, a job fair will be held at The Asbury Hotel on May 6th where local hospitality businesses will have the opportunity to interview Salt School graduates

Where: The Boys and Girls Club of Monmouth County, 1201 Monroe Ave, Asbury Park, NJ

Applications: To apply, visit www.salthotels.com/salt-school

ABOUT SALT HOTELS

Founded in 2014 by Chief Executive Officer David Bowd (formerly Chateau Marmont in Hollywood, The Mercer in New York, and the Chiltern Firehouse in London) and Chief Creative Officer Kevin O’Shea (Starwood Hotels and Resorts and Morgans Hotel Group), Salt Hotels’ award-winning approach to hospitality has set new standards in design and guest experience. The company created Salt House Inn and Eben House in Provincetown, MA to acclaim and launched two projects at the forefront of Asbury Park, NJ’s renaissance: The Asbury and Asbury Ocean Club. In 2014, the group relaunched Shelter Island’s famed The Chequit. Salt Hotels integrates the design, amenities, and technology of large lifestyle hotels with the intimate, personal service, unique character, and community connections of a luxury inn—no matter the scale. The company provides comprehensive services in hotel management, design & development, creative services, sales & marketing, revenue management, food & beverage development and management, and human resources. www.salthotels.com.