Sophie Scherer wins the trainee contest in Baden-Baden with flying colors!

Sophie Scherer wins the trainee contest in Baden-Baden with flying colors!

On November 7, 2025, an exciting competition for aspiring hotel professionals took place at the renowned Brenners Park Hotel in Baden-Baden. Organized by the Selection of German Luxury Hotels, six talented trainees, including five women and one man, came together to demonstrate their skills. What exactly was the aim of the competition? The young talents had to demonstrate their craftsmanship and practical skills in various disciplines, while at the same time mastering the prestigious competition in a playful way.

The competition disciplines included, among others, writing invoices, a room check, check-in, sewing on buttons, decanting wine and a blind tasting. The latter presented a particularly tricky challenge as participants had to identify foods based on their taste alone. To round off the overall package, the tactile sense test also involved feeling different foods such as quinces and spaetzle.

Sophie Scherer as the winner

Among the candidates was 23-year-old Sophie Scherer, who is in her third year of training at the Brenners Park Hotel and had prepared intensively in advance for the blind tasting and decanting. The latter is an important technique in which it is important to avoid recoil in order not to disturb the deposit in the wine. Sophie brought her own sewing kit to master the unexpected sewing tasks with flying colors.

The room check gave the participants the task of finding ten pieces of red paper in a hotel room. This ensured there was enough excitement and thrill, because the goal was clear: whoever won could represent the hotel in which he or she works. Finally, Sophie Scherer emerged as the winner and won an education voucher worth 3,000 euros, a real highlight for her professional future.

Insights into the world of competition

A competition is always an opportunity to further develop personal skills and gain experience. This specific competition not only gave the trainees the opportunity to show off their skills, but also to learn a lot about team spirit and dealing with stress. The participants don't just present themselves as lone fighters, but often act as a team and help each other - an essential lesson in the hotel industry.

Inburger-related aspects, such as the art of decanting wine, the importance of the perfect check-in or the skill in handling sewing work, which the trainees also enjoyed, ensure that such competitions are very popular in the industry. The mixture of serious learning and playful competition gives these events a special character. Find out more about competitions here.

Sophie's story is not only a success story, but it also reflects the seriousness and commitment of the young talents who give their best in the hotel industry every day. It will be interesting to see how the next generation of hotel professionals will develop.