In the month of June, there were 46 percent more starters in the catering industry in the Netherlands compared to a year earlier, according to figures from the Chamber of Commerce. According to the Chamber of Commerce, this increase is mainly due to the number of companies that provide catering for events, such as independent chefs or baristas.
There is also an increase in the number of starting catering entrepreneurs in Drenthe. So far, there are 19 percent more starters in 2022 than in 2021.
Jelle Mooij from Ruinen has been working as a freelancer since January. He works as a cook, sous chef and consultant in the hospitality industry. After a burnout, he decided to start his own business. “I like that I now have control over the hours I work, where I work and what I like. You still have agreements with the employer, but you do it for yourself. For your own company and your own name structure.”
After 25 years of permanent employment in the catering industry, Jeroen Vink from Schoonoord also made the choice last year to start working as a freelancer. He can now be hired as a chef at people’s homes, but he also assists in the kitchen of a restaurant a few days a week. “I have worked for many employers, many restaurants and hotels. In the end I made the choice to build something for myself and for the future. To work as a freelancer in different places and to cook at people’s homes he says.
According to the self-employed, the freedom you have is a major advantage. “I now make my own choices about where I work, what I cook and in what way. With my own ideas and own possibilities,” says Vink. It is also an advantage that the employer now pays per hour. “I also find it important that the overtime is now paid, I get an hourly bill,” says Mooij.
Mooij notices that more and more cooks in his area are working as freelancers. “Due to the corona period, many cooks have stopped, they have gone into care or become carpenters. They have found something with better conditions, their own hours and more freedom.” He notices that a shift is underway. “Employers are increasingly realizing that they have to pay more than they do now.”