The prospective candidate will be identified for her combination of wine academic excellence, aptitude and interpersonal skills.
The 2019 graduate will embark on a year-long internship to learn various aspects of the wine business from production and planning, to marketing and sales.
The candidate's experience will include a four-week stint in Sweden, presenting wines at various consumer wine shows in South Africa and may be involved in the development of a new wine for Drostdy Hof.
The graduate will spend 2020 interning with Drostdy Hof’s parent company, the Distell Group, where she will be mentored by executives, including Distell’s director of corporate and regulatory affairs, Bridgitte Backman.
Tamsyn Parkins who conceived the programme as part of Drostdy Hof’s wider social and eco-sustainability drive says: "PYDA has an excellent track record and we believe it is the right partner in our goal to accelerate the career of a talented and deserving young woman."
Working with students aged 18 to 25, PYDA has been in operation since 2012, supported by a range of local and international private sector funders and charity foundations. It structures its courses with input from the wine and tourism sectors to ensure appropriate learning.
As part of their wine training, students are required to earn the internationally accredited WSET (Wine and Spirit Education Trust) Level 1 certification. Those students choosing to make wine the primary focus of their study for the year, also have the opportunity to pass the WSET Level 2 course.
PYDA's executive director, Nikki Munro comments: "Meaningful work for our graduates in demand-led industries is the fundamental outcome of our programme. That’s why are really excited to be able to offer this post-graduation career break to the right woman student. It is an exceptional learning opportunity. Judging by the calibre of our graduates - almost 200 to date - we expect excellent standards and that it will be a tough task to identify the single best candidate."
Parkins adds that Drostdy Hof had recently adopted Working Towards Sustainability as its brand promise. "We see the industry guidelines to promote social and eco-sustainability as a starting point from which to continually improve ourselves. We can’t afford to sit back. We must keep on exploring additional ways to enhance our social and eco-sustainability standards and credentials. It’s what we expect from ourselves and what wine lovers have the right to expect from us too."
PYDA’s term will commence as of the second week in January 2019 and will run until late November 2019.
