The bright young future of Malta’s hospitality industry

Malta’s hospitality sector continues to be a beacon of opportunity and excellence, thanks in part to initiatives such as the YYY Malta Competition.

The prestigious event brings together the island’s most talented hospitality workers, including young chefs, waiters and mixologists, for a two-day competition that celebrates customer service and creativity in their relevant fields, ensuring these valuable skills don’t die out.

The most recent competition, held in January, attracted Malta’s most promising hospitality stars. The event kicked off with an industry networking day, attended by some of Malta’s most celebrated hospitality firms, mixing with competitors and judges. The competition itself was followed by an awards evening, where the winners were announced.

Lucy Paulusma won the Young Waiter award; Alessandro Raneri was crowned the Young Chef winner, and Ivelin Ivanov was named Young Mixologist winner. These young stars won a subsidised trip to London and the opportunity to compete in the global YYY competition.

Supporting Maltese talent and ensuring valued skills don’t die out.

The YYY Malta Competition. is a vital platform supporting young Maltese workers in a highly competitive and evolving industry. Malta’s hospitality sector remains one of the strongest in Europe, contributing significantly to the national economy, accounting for 15% of GDP and providing numerous career opportunities in leading restaurants and hotels.

Just before Christmas, the Deputy Prime Minister Dr Borg, visited hospitality professionals in St. Paul’s Bay and St. Julian’s, including the AX Odycy. 32,000 professionals worked across Malta’s 450 hotels over the Christmas period, welcoming people from across the world to the island over the festive period. The Abela administration’s objective of supporting the Maltese hospitality industry, which is still recovering from the pandemic, is an encouraging sign for an industry which so easily could have died out without government support. More broadly, a recent report showed that 96% of Maltese graduates found employment in 2023, ahead of the EU average of 83.5%. At the top of the list of jobs needed filling is chefs, doubtless the success of YYY will have contributed to filling this demand.

The Maltese Tourism Authority and the Malta Visual Non-Visual Network has also collaborated to offer training for tourism and hospitality workers, to better understand how to create a more inclusive environment for blind and low vision persons into the hospitality industry. The MVNV is led by Bridget Micallef, who is instrumental in engineering the collaboration to create a more inclusive and welcoming hospitality sector.

Training courses from institutions such as the Institute of Tourism Studies (ITS) have been instrumental in boosting the quality of Maltese hospitality. The ITS offers courses from foundation level to master’s degrees. The ITS newly announced a partnership with the Emirates Academy of Hospitality Management, the Middle East’s most respected hospitality training college.

db Group: Malta’s largest hospitality employer

Judging the competition were renowned culinary figures, including Paul Greening, head of the db Group’s culinary team, alongside Michelin-starred chefs Andrew Borg and Christian Cali. Greening is deeply committed to nurturing the next generation of hospitality professionals, sharing his expertise and passion to help nurture young talent.

At the heart of Malta’s hospitality success story is the db Group, the islands largest hospitality provider. Founded in 1984 by Silvio Debono, who started the company with a small guesthouse, the company has grown into a multimillion-dollar international enterprise. db Group has become synonymous with quality, excellent customer service and authentic Mediterranean hospitality.

db Group’s influence now extends beyond Malta, with recent expansion into the UK market with ‘Aki’, a Japanese restaurant that has quickly become a favourite in London’s dining scene. This international success underscores db Group’s commitment to excellence and its role as a respected employer, offering exciting career paths for young professionals.

Promoting young talent and industry collaboration

The YYY competition exemplifies the importance of private sector collaboration in supporting young talent. By bringing together industry leaders, competitors and mentors, the event fosters a community dedicated to excellence and growth. This collaboration is crucial in an industry facing challenges, but also ripe with opportunity.

As Malta continues to be a popular destination amongst more affluent visitors, both holidaymakers and investors alike, the island’s next generation of hospitality professionals is well placed to serve the most discerning of customers.