A Lady Returnee and Her Revolution of Western Etiquette

A Lady Returnee and Her Revolution of Western Etiquette

Photo by Zhou Pinglang

Source: Popular Photography

As the saying goes, 「Clothes make the man.」 Among those who are well-fed and well-clothed, there are an increasing number of women, in this time of great social changes and pressure, hoping to make themselves new role models with great elegance, excellent tastes, nice delights of life, and positive views of values. Hence, here comes Sara Jane Ho, along with the Institute Sarita which was founded by her.

There is a lady appearing to be increasingly active and outstanding in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Chengdu: Sara Jane Ho, with her Institute Sarita, travels to and fro between big cities in China and teaches people who are striving to equip themselves with better manners about the etiquette she has acquired. As the official website of this institution shows, 「Our mission is to take the Chinese woman by the hand, in this time of great change and pressure, and lead her to a better, more fulfilling life of family oriented values, excellent taste, and quality ideas.」

On July 10, 2015, two trainees were consulting Ho on considerations for wearing fascinators in Institute Sarita, Wukang Road, Shanghai.

After learning about the general knowledge of wearing fascinators, the trainees picked out their favorite ones and put them on, endeavoring to behave elegant in front of the lens.

Just like any other countries in this world, China is now developing on its own track, making progress step by step. In such flourishing cities as Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou, everyone seems to be involved in the entrepreneurial surges. In the office buildings, people are shrewdly calculating their gains and losses while gently conversing with each other; on social occasions, people who behave elegant and refined just now will tear off their beautiful masks in the next moment.

As the consumer culture gradually matures, more and more people have realized that the old saying 「clothes make the man」 is never outmoded. Besides apparels and appearances, those who are well-fed and well-clothed are looking at a person』s manner of speaking and behaving, so as to determine whether he or she is worthy of connection and respect.

As a graduate from the Harvard Business School with various cultural backgrounds, Ho is taking full advantage of what she has learned. With more and more 「social upstarts」 emerging in the Chinese society, she has distinguished herself from the other ordinary entrepreneurs and gained her own share in this expanding emerging market.

In July, 2015, Sara Jane Ho and her trainees.

「When caviar is served with vodka, which one should you enjoy first?」 Ho asked her trainees with a big smile. A girl hesitantly answered, 「Caviar first.」 「No, we should first have a sip of vodka. In this way, we can better perceive how delicious the caviar is.」 On July 10, 2014, nine well dressed-up ladies with elegant makeups were seated in a room on the third floor of a villa on Wukang Road, learning about etiquette from Ho. Several days ago, they got on the planes to Shanghai from different places in China to attend the two-day 「Intensive International Etiquette Course.」 Ho just flied back to Shanghai from Zhuhai where she had delivered a lecture on etiquette to more than a thousand people.

That was a new record for Ho. It seemed that she was nearer to the goal she had tabled in a press interview two years ago.

In July, 2015, Ho was teaching her trainees how to spell and say various western desserts in English during a course of Institute Sarita.

There are tens of designer handbags and plenty of furniture and antiques collected from various places in Ho』s rented house in Shanghai.

Ho was born in Hong Kong. She spent her high-school years in Phillips Exeter Academy, an elite boarding school in America. After graduating from the university, she first worked in an investment bank on Wall Street in New York. She also served as a volunteer in a charity organization for one year. After that, she was admitted into both Harvard Business School and Institut Villa Pierrefeu, an etiquette school in Switzerland. In 2013, Ho was listed as one of Asia』s 50 Power Businesswomen by Forbes. The press report said that she planned to teach the new rich in China about the etiquette of using knives and forks on the table by opening a high-end institution aimed at 「making etiquette vibrant, energetic and flexible.」

Ho was in her house in Shanghai

On July 10, 2015, a trainee bought a fascinator that Ho brought back from France at nearly one thousand yuan in Shanghai.

Ho has mounted several press reports about her and the institution in glass frames, and got them hung on the wall beside the staircase of her institution in Shanghai.

On July 10, 2015, Ho was introducing the delicacies all over France to her trainees in the loft of an aged villa in Shanghai.

「I was 21 at that time, working in M&A at an investment bank on Wall Street. As a bottom employee, I had to work until the small hours and go back to office after sleeping for only two or three hours at home,」 recalling her first job, Ho felt bitter yet grateful. 「But after I left the investment bank, I was grateful that everyone around me at that time was quite competent. They are all truly capable, intelligent, fast-paced and efficient. What I have learned from them is of great help to my career now.」

「When I was in Harvard, I learned a lot from the classes and professors. But those who taught me the most were my classmates who came from different countries and industries. I often chatted with my friends who had all kinds of experiences, and they could give me advice on many things,」 the idea of starting her own business came out at that time as well. 「I was quite sure about two things: First, I would not like to work for others; second, I want to go back to China to advance my career.」

The etiquette training services offered by Institute Sarita were basically inadequate in China at that time. Hence, before starting her own company in China, Ho asked her classmates and friends for their views. 「Many said that nobody would learn it. Those who would like to pay for it might make themselves seem to be poorly-educated.」 「Fortunately, I』ve made it. Then I thought that the environments in which my foreign classmates grew up were different from those of my current clients. For my friends abroad, they have unconsciously learned about the etiquette from their family and people around them.」

The fancy cutlery used during Ho』s teaching.

At the end of August, 2015, Ho was introducing the afternoon tea to the trainees in the class.

「I find that etiquette is considered as a 『low』 word in China. It seems that many believe only bank tellers, hotel employees and people alike need to learn about etiquette. I would like to try my best to change their views.」 At the beginning of her business, Ho came up with several ideas, 「Firstly, I decided to locate the classrooms in the priciest and top-end neighborhood; secondly, by collecting top-end porcelains, I was invited by the wife of the German Ambassador to China to the embassy in Beijing for breakfast; thirdly, I invited a chef working in the French Embassy to Institute Sarita to make western dishes, so as to make the preparations higher-end; fourthly, I decided to charge high tuition — 100,000 yuan for eight-day training courses,」 Ho said that the tuition amounted to approximately 1,000 yuan per hour, which was not insanely expensive for the clients. In fact, there are quite a number of ladies who are able and willing to pay for the tuition.

In July, 2015, Ho was teaching her trainees how to use knives and forks.

The lecture notes of a trainee.

After the morning sessionwas over, Ho took her trainees to a French restaurant to review the relativeetiquette knowledge while enjoying the dishes.

During the lunch, Ho was demonstrating to her trainees how to use knives and forks.

During the lunch, the trainees began to put what they had learned into practice, such as how to tear the bread.

Most of the fancy cutlery used in Ho』s courses are her private collections and of high prices.

At present, Ho』s institution offers three types of courses, including 「Intensive International Etiquette Course」 charging 8,800 yuan for two days』 training, and 「Intensive Hostess Course」 and 「Socialite Course」 which both charge 80,000 yuan for ten days』 training. According to the introduction on the institution website, the Intensive International Etiquette Course includes the usage and history of cutlery, western table manners, dress codes, deportment, an introduction to French cuisine, taboos of eating and drinking, beauty and grooming, and training in British afternoon tea and coffee.

Ho and her trainees were having a group photo taken during the break.

During the break, almost all the trainees took out their phones to share the pictures they took in the class on social networking sites.

When there were new faces turning up in the party, Ho, as the hostess, would come over and greet them with smiles, hugs, cheek kissing or kisses.

More and more young women are embracing the etiquette courses with unprecedented passion. Among the trainees aged between 20 and 40, some are graduates from the world』s leading universities, some are serving in prominent posts in foreign companies and Chinese universities, and others are full-time housewives. All of them believe that there is still a lot for them to learn in terms of etiquette.

At 7 p.m. on July 13, 2015, a party was held in No. 368, Wukang Road. Through the gap between the white Formica door and its frame came a beam of warm light. The room was filled with soft music. Gentlemen and ladies were engaged in small talks with each other, with goblets in their hands. Some shook hands with each other, smiling, and then exchanged their business cards. Once in a while, they would have a taste of the fancy desserts like macaroons on the table. The fully-powered air conditioner made the summer night particularly wonderful.

Middle-aged women at the party.

Middle-aged men at the party.

People were exchanging business cards with each other at the party.

Ho was hugging a new friend at the party.

Ho organized the cocktail party for her potential clients. During this 1.5-hour social activity, Ho and her assistant invited all the guests to the loft to experience a brief mini-lecture on etiquette. They sat there and listened to Ho』s teaching. The scene looked quite similar to the etiquette class three days before — but with far more people.

「It took the West 200 years to finish the industrial revolution. However, in the past three decades, China has witnessed dramatic changes in its industry, culture, social interaction, service industry and development of Internet,」 Ho suggested that many women thus needed to adjust themselves to the impacts brought by these changes through certain efforts and learning. 「For many hostesses in China, money is certainly no longer anything to worry about. Some may travel abroad, and some prefer to stay at home and educate their children. Sometimes, the husbands also need wives who can help them. It is not easy for a woman to know both the way of the world and the way to be genial and elegant.」

Therefore, Ho and her institution provide these women with an ideal solution. In terms of those who cannot afford the tuition of 80,000 yuan, the only possible way, according to a trainee, is to 「let some people learn first, so that they can influence the other people around them and expose more people to the culture of etiquette.」

On July 13, 2015, an information session was held after the party. Ho was introducing the importance of etiquette to people seated there, hoping to draw some new clients.

Ho was having her hair done in a luxury hair salon.

In August, 2015, Ho was arranging her luggage in her rented house in Shanghai. She often needs to fly all over China to give lectures.

In August, 2015, Ho was about to attend a grand party.

「The post-70s women account for a large proportion of my clients. Most of them are faced with great changes in their lives. As they grew up, they hardly had anything and suffered from supply shortage. But now, their children enjoy a gradually westernized life, eating western food and buying foreign goods. Hence, these women find it a little difficult to catch up with their children. That is why I have so many post-70s trainees who, with such a need, are financially stable.」 Actually, many trainees who are willing to pay for the training courses are wives and daughters of some businessmen. They need to learn about social etiquette and table manners, so as to make the men look more decent and gain more business opportunities for them.

「Now I feel that people from the south attach more importance to etiquette. Recently, it is interesting that I have traveled more frequently than ever before to the southwest, which is actually a new market. Chengdu impresses me the most. There are several large shopping malls in Chengdu, selling products of such famous brands as Hermès and MIUMIU. Every time I visit a city, I will go to those cosmopolitan places such as luxury shops and western restaurants, because I can tell from them whether people in this city have been exposed to the world. Chengdu girls are quite open and they would like to learn about new things. Most of my trainees are from Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Chengdu, and a few are from the northeast.」

In August, 2015, Ho was attending a dinner party in Shangri-La Hotel, Shanghai.

Ho was attending a dinner party.

On the evening of November 26, 2015, Ho invited more than twenty trainees and friends to Linx, a bar in Shanghai, to attend the party organized by her.

The dance music inside the bar made the ears tingle, and two girls were chatting loudly. For these young men and women, this party was just a social activity they had got used to.

On August 28, 2015, Ho and her trainees had a group photo taken after the class in Institute Sarita, Shanghai.

Since Ho founded Institute Sarita in Beijing in 2013, her team has grown to ten members. She believes that the market, full of business opportunities, seems to be more lucrative than expected. 「Recently, some are imitating our institution and offering similar etiquette training services by copying our curriculum. However, I am still confident about the future of Institute Sarita, because I, as the lecturer, have diversified cultural backgrounds. Foreign lecturers cannot understand the needs of Chinese people well, so the cost of communicating with clients is high. The other Chinese lecturers do not have as many experiences as I do, and many etiquette teachers in China are actually faking it. They certainly cannot behave as naturally as I do. I can make people feel at ease, which is my biggest advantage.」

Ho thinks that entrepreneurship is not for everyone: Some people work best in state-owned enterprises, because the life there is more stable; some work best in large companies, as there are more resources. Things may differ in different industries. 「If one wants to start his or her own business, charisma is very important. Since, for a great deal of time, the employees will be impacted if you are hesitant and show the white feather, especially in this industry requiring us to draw clients with our charisma.」

「Among those I know, few of them started their businesses in a traditional industry like me. The reason is that, in China, it is easy for companies to get listed, especially on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange, because they are lightly regulated. Many of my friends starting their own businesses are post-80s and -90s, and they are all engaged in the Internet industry. I often hear that their companies have raised their series B or C financing, and they』ve raised a few hundred million yuan…」

At present, Ho is preparing for her second company, attempting to buy into the growth of Web startups. 「Institute Sarita is a traditional training institution. However, probably influenced by my friends, I am also thinking of making my business more modern.」 She decides to make some online videos, of which the topics include etiquette, fine food, beauty and health. She hopes to draw more modern Chinese women to be her clients.

In August, 2015, Ho was attending a dinner party in Shanghai.