Quintessentially Group

Quintessentially Group
Private
Industry Concierge
Founded 2000
Founders Aaron Simpson
Ben Elliot
Paul Drummond
Headquarters London, England, United Kingdom
Key people
  • Ian Neale, CEO, Europe and US
  • Emma Sherrard Matthew, CEO, Hong Kong
Services Concierge and life style management services[1]
Number of employees
 1,500 (2014[2])
Website quintessentiallygroup.com

Quintessentially Group is a British concierge company founded in 2000 by Aaron Simpson, Ben Elliot and Paul Drummond.[3] The company is headquartered in London[4] and operates 67 offices worldwide.[5] Quintessentially is a members-only "luxury lifestyle management service" that provides concierge services including travel bookings, restaurant recommendations, and access to events.[6] Quintessentially Group includes 33 companies, including Quintessentially Lifestyle, Quintessentially Events, and the Quintessentially Foundation.[7][8][9]

History

Quintessentially was established in 2000 by Aaron Simpson, Paul Drummond and Ben Elliot, the nephew of the Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall.[10][11] Simpson met Drummond at Oxford University and later started the company with business partner Elliot as a small, London-based concierge service.[12] Before founding Quintessentially, Elliot had co-founded K-Bar Plc, a group of nightclubs and bars, and Simpson had worked as a film producer.[13]

From 2002 to 2005, Quintessentially expanded from two offices in the United Kingdom to ten around the world.[14] The company grew to over 55 offices in cities such as Hong Kong, Cape Town, Istanbul, Mozambique, Cairo, Panama, Los Angeles and Sydney.[15][16]

In 2010, the company was estimated to have about 86,000 subscribers, including 800 billionaires.[15] Quintessentially moved its headquarters from Soho to Portland Place in early 2011.[17] The company grew over 20 percent during 2012 from £13.5million in turnover to £16.7million by April 2013.[10] In 2015, the group's total turnover was £65million.[18]

The Quintessentially Lifestyle App was introduced in early 2014. The mobile app features recommendations, reviews, and allows members to make requests to their Lifestyle Managers.[19]

Operations

Quintessentially Group is a network of 33 companies that operate the personal services provided for its private members.[9] These companies include Quintessentially Travel Group, Quintessentially Aviation,[20] Quintessentially Estates,[21] and Quintessentially Gifts.[5]

Quintessentially Lifestyle

Quintessentially Lifestyle is a members-only luxury lifestyle management and concierge service.[11] The New York Times called Quintessentially Lifestyle, "The company that transformed the idea of concierge services into 'lifestyle management.'"[14][22] It provides Corporate Solutions and Private Memberships that include preferential rates on hotels and other reservations, access to events, luxury gifts, and other services.[9][16]

CEO Ian Neale heads the operations in Europe and United States, and Emma Sherrard Matthew is the CEO in Hong Kong.[23] Globally, the firm employs more than 2,000 Lifestyle Managers in over 60 offices speaking 35 languages.[24]

Quintessentially Foundation

Established in June 2008, the Quintessentially Foundation is the charitable arm of the Group.[17] It has raised more than £4,000,000 through various fundraisers, including the annual Poker Night.[25] In 2013, the annual Poker Night fundraiser generated £160,000 for the Duchenne Children's Trust that funds research for the development of a cure for Duchenne muscular dystrophy.[26] The foundation has supported organisations like Room to Read and has also funded medical research to find a cure for Type 1 diabetes.[13] The company has also organized a 500 kilometre rickshaw race in India to raise money for elephant protection.[18]

References

  1. ↑ Afsun Smith (February 26, 2003). "Beyond The Black Card?". Forbes. Retrieved February 6, 2015.
  2. ↑ Ashley Armstrong (November 15, 2014). "Quintessentially hopes its fixers can fetch £120m". Telegraph. Retrieved February 6, 2015.
  3. ↑ Robinson, James (30 July 2007). "Guardian Media Group: Luxury magazines have designs on readers with the deepest pockets of all". Guardian Online. London. Retrieved 2011-01-19.
  4. ↑ "Quintessentially Sees Hong Kong as a Natural Fit for its HQ" (PDF).
  5. 1 2 Marrhew Schneier (December 17, 2014). "A Gift So Right, She'll Know You Got Help". The New York Times. Retrieved February 6, 2015.
  6. ↑ "When it's the gardener's day offand the topiary really needs a trim". New York Times. 8 December 2005. Archived from the original on 9 March 2011.
  7. ↑ "Quintessentially: The Luxury Lifestyle". Lux Worldwide. July 21, 2012. Retrieved February 6, 2015.
  8. ↑ Lauren Matison (October 23, 2008). "Quintessentially Opens Event Division in New York, Hires New Director". BizBash. Retrieved February 6, 2015.
  9. 1 2 3 Matthew Kassel (March 8, 2012). "A Personal Concierge Service That Will Do Your Errands—And Book You A Yacht On The French Riviera". Business Insider. Retrieved February 6, 2015.
  10. 1 2 Sarah Bridge (January 25, 2014). "Pandering to the jet set sends profits soaring at concierge group Quintessentially". This is Money. Retrieved February 6, 2015.
  11. 1 2 Jacobs, Emma. "21st Century Butlers". http://www.ft.com/. Retrieved 20 December 2010. External link in |website= (help)
  12. ↑ Anna Tyzack (October 20, 2011). "My perfect weekend: Ben Elliot". Telegraph. Retrieved February 6, 2015.
  13. 1 2 "Leaders in Luxury Ben Elliot". Elite Traveler. February 5, 2009. Retrieved February 6, 2015.
  14. 1 2 Pham, Lisa. "Hey, Big Spender, You Want Value?". http://www.nytimes.com/. Retrieved 23 October 2009. External link in |website= (help)
  15. 1 2 Mark Potter (June 3, 2010). "Quintessentially goes upmarket to beat recession". Reuters. Retrieved February 6, 2015.
  16. 1 2 "Membership To Quintessentially – The Ultimate Christmas Gift". Elite Traveler. October 17, 2008. Retrieved February 6, 2015.
  17. 1 2 "Business Diary: Ben Elliot, Quintessentially". Financial Times. August 29, 2011. Retrieved February 6, 2015.
  18. 1 2 Bridge, Sarah (5 September 2015). "Need That Table, Ticket, or Rare Item? Meet Aaron Simpson the Upmarket Fixer Who Knows the Habits of the Super Rich". This is Money. Retrieved 30 October 2015.
  19. ↑ King, Jen. "Quintessentially Lifestyle app uses geolocation to curate concierge experience". http://www.luxurydaily.com/. Retrieved 19 March 2014. External link in |website= (help)
  20. ↑ Terry Spruce (August 23, 2011). "Quintessentially Aviation and Blue Star Jets collaborate". Corporate Jet Investor. Retrieved February 6, 2015.
  21. ↑ Angus Watson (July 4, 2009). "The TV or Radio Is Always On". Financial Times. Retrieved February 6, 2015.
  22. ↑ Pham, Lisa. "Hey, Big Spender, You Want Value?". http://www.nytimes.com/. Retrieved 23 October 2009. External link in |website= (help)
  23. ↑ Yan, Cathy. "What's Hot on the Concierge List". wsj.com. Retrieved 24 November 2010.
  24. ↑ "Quintessentially's Most Extravagant Requests". http://www.esquire.co.uk/. Retrieved 27 August 2013. External link in |website= (help)
  25. ↑ "The Quintessentially Foundation Gives Guests The Chance to Play to Their Hand For a Great Cause". Chartwell Media. Retrieved February 6, 2015.
  26. ↑ Juliet Conway (October 11, 2013). "Quintessentially Foundation Annual Poker Night at the Savoy Hotel". Daily Mail. Retrieved February 6, 2015.

External links

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