Boutique-hotels can teach everyone about customer service

In recent years, the term “boutique” provider has been coined as the highest standard of personalized customer care in many industries. So how do those high-end boutique hotels do it so well, effortlessly and seamlessly? It’s all in the details, they would casually tell you, but you can’t “buy” the right attitude or the enthusiasm of their carefully appointed personnel. As you walk in, you are practically greeted by name, as staff recall a note or two from a previous conversation they had with you. The welcoming atmosphere most likely includes many added-values to each stay, such as treats and soft music waiting in your suite, or cocktails in the lounge to thank you for joining this pampered clique. The concierge has a solution for everything, usually in a matter of minutes and at no extra charge. The in-house spa makes you want to  move in with them. Turn down service, down linens, complimentary beauty products you actually want to use on your skin, 24-hour gym and room service, what’s not to like? Now imagine this approach to service in your daily life… from your banker to your favourite coffee house, and you can practically hear – what a wonderful world – playing in your head. Thank you to Hotel Quintessence in Tremblant for their incomparable level of spoiling right down to the heated ski boots and slippers waiting every morning in the lobby, and Hotel Place D’Armes in Old Montreal, for their wonderful nesting qualities and most rejuvenating offerings while on a business trip. Attending the National Snow Industry Association’s yearly tradeshow was that much more exciting. May everyone experience that “Boutique” kind of feeling in other service sectors!