Unusual demands of luxury concierge services' clients
Wealthy Indian clients of concierge services firms sometimes make unusual demands. Here's a list of a few of the most bizarre.
Illustration: RAJ VERMA
Wealthy Indian clients of concierge services firms sometimes make unusual demands. Here's a list of a few of the most bizarre.
1. A concierge firm was once asked to supply 500 white butterflies for a client's wedding in India
2. The CEO of a consumer goods company wanted singer Britney Spears to have dinner exclusively with him. The concierge firm arranged it
3. A client from a Uganda-based business family, on a visit to Kenya, wanted to witness the tribal coming of-age ceremony called Eunoto, by which young Masais become 'junior elders'. The concierge firm got the village elders' permission for him to do so
4. A concierge firm was stumped when a client asked to be provided toilet paper engraved with his own initials
5. Another such firm arranged an exclusive cricket coaching session and chat with Rahul Dravid for a senior executive at a technology company
6. A client asked for monkey catchers to deal with the simian menace at his residence
7. A concierge firm received a request for a DVD of an international award-winning documentary. But it was not on sale. The firm contacted the filmmaker, got him to convert the film to DVD format and sent it to the client concerned
8. A client wanted Japanese puppies of Shiba Inu breed, similar to the one featured in the Richard Gere film Hachiko. The puppies are not available in India. So they were brought from Japan
9. A concierge fi rm arranged a marriage proposal atop the Great Wall of China for a banker from Singapore
10. A member in Mumbai wanted to present his wife a Montblanc-John Lennon limited-edition pen. Only 70 pieces were globally available. The concierge firm contacted its international offices and got the pen
11. A concierge firm arranged a villa for a week at the Hamptons, one of New York's priciest localities, for a member and his family on holiday in the United States
12. A customer wanted, "at any cost", a scarf similar to the ones the late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat wore
13. A British woman's light-brown Birkin bag worth Rs 7.5 lakh was soiled during Holi in Mumbai. The concierge firm sent it to Hermes in Paris, where it was painted black
14. A concierge firm organised a visit to the Ferrari factory in Italy for a Bangalore-based realtor and his family
*Anecdotes courtesy American Express, Quintessentially Lifestyle India, Les Concierges and T'Rouge Concierge
1. A concierge firm was once asked to supply 500 white butterflies for a client's wedding in India
2. The CEO of a consumer goods company wanted singer Britney Spears to have dinner exclusively with him. The concierge firm arranged it
3. A client from a Uganda-based business family, on a visit to Kenya, wanted to witness the tribal coming of-age ceremony called Eunoto, by which young Masais become 'junior elders'. The concierge firm got the village elders' permission for him to do so
4. A concierge firm was stumped when a client asked to be provided toilet paper engraved with his own initials
5. Another such firm arranged an exclusive cricket coaching session and chat with Rahul Dravid for a senior executive at a technology company
6. A client asked for monkey catchers to deal with the simian menace at his residence
7. A concierge firm received a request for a DVD of an international award-winning documentary. But it was not on sale. The firm contacted the filmmaker, got him to convert the film to DVD format and sent it to the client concerned
8. A client wanted Japanese puppies of Shiba Inu breed, similar to the one featured in the Richard Gere film Hachiko. The puppies are not available in India. So they were brought from Japan
9. A concierge fi rm arranged a marriage proposal atop the Great Wall of China for a banker from Singapore
10. A member in Mumbai wanted to present his wife a Montblanc-John Lennon limited-edition pen. Only 70 pieces were globally available. The concierge firm contacted its international offices and got the pen
11. A concierge firm arranged a villa for a week at the Hamptons, one of New York's priciest localities, for a member and his family on holiday in the United States
12. A customer wanted, "at any cost", a scarf similar to the ones the late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat wore
13. A British woman's light-brown Birkin bag worth Rs 7.5 lakh was soiled during Holi in Mumbai. The concierge firm sent it to Hermes in Paris, where it was painted black
14. A concierge firm organised a visit to the Ferrari factory in Italy for a Bangalore-based realtor and his family
*Anecdotes courtesy American Express, Quintessentially Lifestyle India, Les Concierges and T'Rouge Concierge
