Bed and Breakfast Courses taught in Victoria, British Columbia

All courses are taught one-on-one customized to your schedule and specifically applicable to your geographical location anywhere in the world taking in to account local bylaws and regulations

Offered by established InnKeeper and College Instructor Dieter Gerhard of Birds of a Feather Victoria B&B

There are 3 B&B business courses plus a mentorship program which we offer:

1. Starting a B&B

2. Marketing your B&B

3. Operating a more Profitable Business

4. On-going support Inn-Keeper Mentorship

Offering courses for both aspiring and established InnKeepers. Here's how it works:

1. Pick one, or more of the 3 courses we offer.

2. All courses are taught in our PCTIA registered school at SchoolVictoria.com

3. If you also need accommodations please check our on-line room availability calendar.

4. Call Dieter toll free at 1-800-730-4790 or 1-877-275-5895 to arrange a course date that is mutually convenient to both of you.

Course #1: Starting a Bed and Breakfast - for Aspiring InnKeepers
Cost: $250.00 (add $100.00 for each extra person) plus cost of accommodations

5 to 6 hours over 1 day covers the items listed below.

FOLLOW UP: Wherever feasible for us we will try to include your B&B in our travel plans at an appropriate time after you have opened your establishment and stay with you for a night or 2 and give you some critical feedback on how you are doing.

1. Legalities

• making it legal

• a business structure

• taxation

• income tax

• business license information

• zoning regulations

• building code and fire safety regulations

• permits

• identification signs

• fire regulations

• fire containment

• egress

• detection

• suppression

• insurance

2. Financial

• write-offs

• financial worksheet

• maintenance worksheet

• research costs

• miscellaneous start-up costs

• calculating business portion of home

• how much are my rooms worth

• helpful hints

• accounting form

3. This is the B&B Business

• where to begin

• what's in a name

• register your name

• what is a B&B

• can you operate a B&B

• who will be my clients

• smokers, pets, and children

• neighbourhood assessment

• tourist attractions

• know your competition

• advantages

• disadvantages

• skills required

4. Setting up the Home

• renovations

• bedrooms

• extra touches

• beds and bedding

• bathrooms

• hallways and stairwells

• common areas

• guest eating area

• your private space

• decorating and upkeep

• gardens

• house rules

• wedding parties

• please don't come back

• stolen goods

• accidents

• asking for payment

5. Odds and Ends

• B&B associations

• basic marketing

• brochures

• networking

• internet considerations

• accreditations

• Food Safe certification

• casual labour versus employees

• WCB

Course #2: Operating a more Profitable Business - for InnKeepers already operating a B&B
Cost: $250.00 (add $100.00 for each extra person) plus cost of accommodations where required

6 to 8 hours over 1 or 2 days instruction, is a Level 2 advanced version of many of the business related topics listed above for the Starting a B&B course with an emphasis on improving your business skills to operate a more profitable business. Additionally, other sources of B&B spin-off income are discussed.

Course #3: Marketing your B&B - available to everyone
Cost: $250.00 (add $100.00 for each extra person) plus cost of accommodations if required

4 to 5 hours of instruction. Get the most out of your marketing dollar. Learn all you need to know to bring traffic to your web site and get positioned high on Google ... click here for more details

• There are also many other computer and internet courses available at SchoolVictoria.com everything from search engine optimization to html to Dreamweaver and FrontPage to Adobe Photoshop. Take control of your business today!