We are so happy to welcome Veerle Raemdonck as our new UQ Masterclass Partner! Her expertise? Personal Branding & Hospitality! You’re probably wondering: “What makes her so special?” Well, apart from being the kindest person we’ve ever met, she has over 30 years of international experience working in the luxury industry. She has been a manager at Louis Vuitton and Delvaux, and worked as a trainer and consultant for Luxury Attitude in Paris. She consulted for brands such as Essentiel, Neuhaus, Thalys and Carrefour. Furthermore, she shares our vision of finding everyone’s true colours inside of them and letting them shine. This way, you can become a more authentic person, a better ambassador of your organisation, a more successful entrepreneur etc.
What can you expect from Veerle?
With her experience in the Retail & Fashion industry, her knowledge and expertise are all about creating “Wow” moments for customers and improving your business while doing so. Her expertise together with her convincing, enthusiastic and empowering language promises true change and transformation.
She’ll provide you with fantastic content on Personal Branding, Interpersonal Impact and Hospitality, in every possible way. There will be something in the training courses for everyone: for you as an individual, as a team member, as an entrepreneur, but also for the organisation you built/work for itself.
A handful of unique, practical content will soon be available in our UQ coach and Teach on Mars apps! Furthermore, you can expect blended training programmes tailor-made to your organisation. This way, you can benefit even more from what she has to offer!
If you are not branding yourself, rest assured that others will do it for you.
Veerle Raemdonck
Create the image that represents who you are!
What is Hospitality to you?
Hospitality is creating and leaving great souvenirs behind thanks to your sincere actions, memorable words and little unexpected tokens that you give. It’s loving to communicate with people, affecting them emotionally, and surprising them by exceeding their expectations.
It’s about being the best host possible to make people feel welcome and recognized. Be present in the moment to give another person your full attention. Hospitality is trying to understand and anticipate the wishes, fears and doubts of your customers.
There are three magical words: empathy, proactivity and caring!
What drives you in your job?
I want to be able to give to as many people as possible a toolbox with concrete tools to help them feel confident in their job, help them find the resilience to get up when they’ve had a setback and aim for their goals by believing in their unique qualities. I, myself, struggled for a long time to show people who I am, like I am. It’s such a great pleasure to develop yourself to your true potential!
I want to inspire people to see things differently, to open their eyes gently and transform them into their most authentic selves.
What made you decide to go into your field of expertise?
I like people, quality, and brands with a story and a history, with the richness of their creativity. Being part of the search towards becoming and staying one’s true authentic self, is a great mission and challenge. I love raising people to a higher level of their potential.
Do you want to know more about her?
As you can probably imagine already, Veerle is very passionate about personal development, empowerment, customer experience and colour psychology. Yes, she’ll be analysing your outfit and the colours that you wear to deduce how you’re feeling and what message you want to convey. Rest assured, she’s just as mindful about what she’s wearing.
Veerle is creative, an active listener, empathic, proactive and in for a great service.
At the weekend, she loves spending quality time with her sons, fiancé and lovely dog Lola. Or, of course, you can find her in Paris, Ghent or some other fashionable city having a great time with friends.
Some fun facts about Veerle
- I get out of bed for the shades of light of the morning sun and to see and hear nature awakening.
- My heroes are
- Firstly: my father. He was a very charismatic person, who was interested in everyone and was able to let you feel valued just as you are. He shined his light upon many people and encouraged them to believe in themselves.
- Secondly, I know a lot of female entrepreneurs who give the best of themselves over and over again, and whose drive is incredibly resilient. They believe in their mission, stay humble and authentic and don’t fear criticism.
- Thirdly, If I should name two celebrities, I think of Edouard Vermeulen and Dries Van Noten. Two passionate men who spend their lives making other people beautiful, letting them shine and making them unique with their clothes and fabulous creative collections. The picture is always perfect!
- What gets me truly excited is the effect that colour has on me. The combination of shades and gradations is like poetry to me. They can move me deeply. I see beauty in many things and stay childlike surprised by the harmony I can discover in art, nature, fashion and even common daily objects. I have the eye of a painter who sees the details and I’m grateful for that. In my opinion, colours and shapes say so much more than words. That’s why I am so interested in the impact of personal branding.
- Mentally I’m only 20 years old. The older I get, the more fun I want to experience in doing what I like and what I’m born to do. That gives me a new kind of energy, which keeps me young. I love being surrounded by younger people because of their sparkling power, their flexibility and their fresh look at the world.
I’d love to be a cat with 9 lives, because there’s so much to discover, to try out.
