Butlers are Indispensable to the Pampered Lifestyle

A guest post from our Butler Services expert, Steven Ferry.

Regardless of what luxury hotel guests, and individuals and families in upscale private residences look for, pampering and having fun are two common goals that butlers are relied upon increasingly to provide.

And what do they provide? Anything legal! And when the butler is doing his or her best, they’ll anticipate the guest or employer’s wants before they even ask for it. This is part of the magic of having a butler—where things appear almost before you know you want or need it.

Luxury resorts and hotels strive to create magical moments for their guests, in keeping with their mission. This is why butler service is being offered increasingly in hotel settings, instead of just in private estates, as was the case only thirty years ago, before the hospitality industry realized the extra dimension of service guests could experience in their suites and villas.

For families who haven’t inherited or been raised with great wealth and who may not be used to the idea of butlers as a superior service-provider usually reserved for aristocracy and royalty, there is much to be gained from turning over the grind of running their estates and staff to a trained and experienced butler, allowing them the freedom to enjoy the fruits their great wealth brings.

Over the years, I have had the pleasure of working around the world with private families (who obviously must remain nameless), as well as top hotel chains and private villas, where the managers and staff have been more than eager to learn just what it is that make butlers the superior-service professionals that they are.

This doesn’t mean tails, white gloves, and hushed tones everywhere. This might be the case in London and New York – at The Savoy, St. Regis, and Mandarin Oriental – but not in the natural world of the Six Senses or One & Only chains, where white beaches and flashing white-teeth smiles are more in order, and the butlers work bare-footed.

If one thing is certain, whatever the venue, those who can afford it will always be better off with a modern or traditional butler in the wings, seeing to their every need.

Steven Ferry