memberof
LesClefs
d’Or
—orTheGolden
KeySociety, as it is
known incertainparts
of theworld (though,
in fact, theUnited
Statesuses theFrench title).
The jobofconciergehasbeenaround
forcenturies.The term,derived from
comte
descierges
,or“keeperof thecandles,”dates
back tomedievalFrance,designated to
thosewhoservedvisitingnobles incastles.
Thesocietywas founded inParisbyFrench
concierges in1929
andexpanded in
theearly1950s
toninecountries
inEuropebefore
growing into the
modern-dayglobalnetwork that today
boasts4,000concierges in65countries,
fromFinland toFrenchPolynesia.There
are575members in theUnitedStates
alone.Thenetworkcontinues toexpand,
even in thiseraofhyperconnectedguests
armedwithsmartphones.
In fact, thenumberof
LesClefsd’Or
members—whoareadmittedonlyafter
fiveyearsofhotel-lobbyexperienceaswell
assponsorship from twosocietymembers
andpassinggradesonawrittenexam—has
jumpedgloballyover the lastdecadeby32
percent, inpartareflectionof theworld-
widespreadof luxuryhotels.
And then there’s theWesAnderson
effect.Anderson’s2014hitfilm,
TheGrand
BudapestHotel
,wasbuiltaroundamain
character (playedbyRalphFiennes)who
servedas thehotel’sconciergeandwhoat
acriticalmoment turned to thenetworkof
concierges inhotelsaroundEurope toget
outofapredicament. (Nospoilershere.)
LikeallofAnderson’sfilms,
TheGrand
BudapestHotel
wascreated from thewacky
imaginationof thedirectorandhis team.
T
herequestcame
fromaguestvisiting
Londonaftera long
absence:Could the
hotelconcierge,Toru
Machida, fromhis
modestworkstation in the fronthall,help
thiselderly foreignvisitorfinda friendhe
hadnotseen indecades?Amanwhose last
namehehad, regrettably, somehow for-
gotten,butwithwhomheonceworkedata
nearbyshippingcompany inLondon.The
only thingheknew forsure:Thefirstname
ofhis long-lost friendwasRoy.
Itwas thekindof inquiry thatexplains
whyMachida, thechiefconciergeat the
SavoyHotel inLondon,hasasetofcrossed
goldenkeyspinned toeach lapel.
Machida isamemberof theexclusive
international societynamed
LesClefsd’Or
,
aprofessionalorganizationof theworld’s
topconciergeswhoseskillsgo farbeyond
simplyknowinghow tobooka tableat that
permanentlyoverbookedrestaurant.
“Weneed toknowwhatourguests
are looking forevenbefore theyknow it,”
Machidasays, lookingoutover thebustling
lobbyat theSavoy.
“It isallaboutcreatingabitofmagic,”
addsMichaelRomei, chefconciergeat
theWaldorfAstoriaand theTowersof the
WaldorfAstoria inNewYork, andanother
Michael Romei (above) and the lobbyof theWaldorf
Astoria inNewYorkCity, wherehe is chef concierge
AMERICANWAY
OCTOBER2015
69
PHOTOS
WALDORF ASTORIA NEW YORK
