In mid-December, the city received an early Christmas present with the opening of the much-anticipated St. Regis Macao. This fourth hotel brand completes the Sands Cotai Central complex, adding to the Sheraton, Conrad and Holiday Inn properties. With 400 guest rooms and suites, it is the largest St. Regis hotel in the world and the brand’s seventh hotel in Greater China.
“There is an ever-increasing demand for luxury around the globe and Macau is no exception,” said Jim Petrus, Global Brand Leader, St. Regis Hotels & Resorts. “The original St. Regis hotel opened in New York City in 1904, and the debut of The St. Regis Macao marks the brand’s 36th property.”
The hotel includes a multi-experience dining venue with cosmopolitan, high-end cuisine and a bistro-style indoor garden experience, and the Iridium Spa, located on the 38th floor.
The signature St. Regis Bar will serve up the hotel’s twist on the legendary Bloody Mary cocktail, which was first created at the brand’s flagship hotel in New York in the early 1900s. Called the Maria do Leste (“Mary of the East”), the local concoction fuses classic ingredients of traditional Portuguese spices like pink peppercorns, piri-piri and cinnamon.
And to further enhance the guest experience, The St. Regis Macao is offering its signature St. Regis Butler Service for all guests – a first in Macau.
The exclusive St. Regis “Allow me” Butler Service has been a hallmark of the St. Regis experience for more than 100 years, and today provides a range of assistance including beverage services, unpacking and packing, garment pressing, shoe shine, as well personalized help with virtually any other type of request you can think of.
A 24/7 Personal Assistant can run a bubble bath for guests after a long flight, organize itineraries, make reservations at the best restaurants, and even ensure that a guest has a favourite book or a thoughtful last-minute gift for a loved one – no request is too small or unattainable, no matter what the hour.
The man behind the Butler team is Head Butler, Tony Sharp. With over 30 years of experience, he has worked in casinos, hotels and resorts, several leading St. Regis hotels, and private and diplomatic residences serving some of the world’s foremost figures, including President George H.W. Bush and other heads of state. He arrived in Macau in February last year to begin preparations for this his sixth St. Regis opening and CLOSER spoke with him just prior to the big day.
Macau CLOSER: Can you tell us a bit about what guests at The St. Regis Macao can expect from the Butler Service?
Tony Sharp: The differentiating factor of St. Regis is that all guests, not just VIPs can access a butler. It’s a personalized service, and we can adjust and choreograph your stay to meet your needs. If you arrive and you are in a rush, we can assist you with unpacking your luggage, get you a cup of coffee or tea, press or steam your clothes or suit, polish your shoes, before you go on to do what you need to do. We can even unpack your whole wardrobe so you don’t have to worry about it. All those kinds of things save time so you can do what you need to do. We’ll make the restaurant booking for you or organize a car so you don’t have to do it. The Butler Service Team literally manages the hotel; everyone calls into that one location and we then disseminate the request of the guests, so it’s one area owning the guest experience.
Having worked in so many properties around the world, what would you say is one of the most important things you have to consider as a butler?
Cultural awareness is the main thing. You have to study a lot but you also learn it through your staff and management team. In a pre-opening, usually 50 percent are local, so you very quickly learn what is culturally acceptable and what is not. It’s an exchange of ideas.
We look at what our foundations of excellence are for the brand, how St. Regis wants to deliver service, and then we build on that, change it to suit the location, but we keep the core foundation of our service delivery and then we adapt and build on top of it.
Things are always done slightly differently so there are slight differences and nuances, but hospitality is hospitality. Treating someone with respect as though you are welcoming them into your home is 95 percent of hospitality.
Are there any particular skills or qualities that a good butler needs to have?
Loyalty, patience, being a good listener, an ability to think laterally not in a linear way, and definitely having an eye for detail. For example, noticing where someone puts their reading glasses; nine times out of ten someone will put their book and reading glasses on the side of the bed they sleep on. So that’s the side of the bed we have to turn down. Or noticing what type of book they are reading and writing a note to them in the language of that book. If it’s French, having a butler who speaks French write them a nice evening note in French.
When you were recruiting in Macau, what were you looking for in the applicants?
It’s always about their attitude first. They want to succeed, they want to excel, they want to give of themselves. I interviewed every single one of them. We were looking for people who were dedicated and looking to do something different. Everywhere else in Macau, butler services are only for an elite few in a VIP service area, but here it is an entire hotel offering, so that’s a whole different concept, so we needed people to think in a broader mindset. It’s been a challenge, but it’s been great fun watching the staff grow.
And how is the team now that you are finished all the training?
The team consists of local and expats, a number from City University coming through the Starwood Development Programme, a number of students that have graduated from IFT, and some butlers that have worked for other St. Regis properties so they understand what St. Regis is and this helps the other team members grow.
During the training, how important is it to emphasize the traditions of this occupation?
There is most definitely a focus on the heritage. Butlers are a legacy of St. Regis. They were always present and are still present in every property. Butler’s in St. Regis have been around since 1904, and dedicated butlers started in 1906. It is the differentiating factor; we are the only hotel group who have had butlers since the opening and it’s been 111 years.
With over 30 years of experience, you must have noticed some changes in the profession.
Service is still service, but it has evolved and technology has changed things. I was a butler when there were no mobile phones. Now we have evolved how we communicate and the transfer of information has become much faster. The challenge is digesting the information, utilizing it and responding in a full and appropriate manner. Now at St. Regis we also have the e-butler service so you can email us ahead of time and tell us what you need, and we can organize it.
Discretion is vital in this profession, but you must have had some interesting requests. Anything you can tell us about?
I am the keeper of secrets and they will die with me (smiles) but once I flew mangoes and berries from Fiji to Sydney for breakfast when I only found out the afternoon before. They were served at breakfast at 8 o’clock in the morning and then repacked and flown back with the guest to Fiji. I was lucky enough to know the right people and it worked. You just try to facilitate.
Sometimes you may not be able to produce exactly what the person wants, but you always have to have an alternative. And then you have to be a salesperson!
