Security, The Pierre, New York
On the evening of Thursday, December 9th while Security Officers George Otoo and Charles Gonzalez were on duty they were informed that a bus had broken down outside of the hotel on 5th Avenue. George and Charles immediately responded to investigate and Charles spoke to the driver of the bus in order to assess the situation. The driver informed Charles that the bus had no power, and that his company had been informed and would be sending a service technician, who would arrive in approximately one hour.
The bus was on its way to Atlantic City for the weekend with a group of senior citizens who were looking forward to a nice, comfortable trip and an enjoyable weekend. George told Charles that he was concerned about the frigid temperatures outside; with the bus having no power he knew it was only a matter of time before the bus became too cold for its passengers. Charles agreed and together with Frank, they came up with a plan to accommodate the passengers. They advised the driver that he and the passengers were welcome to come inside to the Hotel Lobby where it is always warm and secure; they could wait until the service technician arrived and restored power to the bus.
As Charles directed the heavy 5th Avenue traffic around the bus, George directed the passengers safely into the Hotel Lobby. Once inside, George and Charles tried to make the elderly passengers as comfortable as possible by providing them with water, restroom access and seats. Needless to say all of the passengers were grateful to George and Charles for their kindness and generosity and felt very lucky that the bus broke down in front of The Pierre Hotel with its caring staff that treated them like V.I.P. guests!
The ultimate sales story! Sales, Taj Boston
In mid-November, a Virtuoso agent called Sales to book a mother and daughter's stay in Boston for a couple of nights. Sales found out that it was the mother's 60th birthday and the daughter's 30th birthday. This was to be a special trip. Sales also found out that their original plans were to go to Paris to celebrate their birthdays. Due to the labor strikes in France, they decided it would not be a good idea to continue with their plans. Once Sales found this out, they decided to bring Paris to Boston!
The reservations team was employed to ensure a room with double beds were pre-blocked and upgraded to a beautiful view of the Public Gardens and Boston Common for the Fall Foliage. Guest Recognition worked with Pastry to create a chocolate Eiffel Tower amenity upon arrival and had a birthday card for both ladies written in French, as well as, having a French fashion magazine laid out on the bed.
Sales also found out that ladies were planning on shopping on the Champs Elysse while in Paris. Sales were able to get the Concierge to circle all stores that were French, like Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Hermes, etc. And fashion stores, such as, Ralph Lauren, Kate Spade, Burberry, etc. The guests also wanted to see French architecture and museums. The Concierge was able to draw a path through the Boston Common to Beacon Hill where all the housing is Parisian in design, as well as, making it seem like they were walking through a garden in Paris. They also suggested they visit the Museum of Fine Arts where they can see Colonial embroidery that is French inspired and the Artist Abroad exhibit that has artworks from London, Paris, Rome and Venice. The guests thoroughly enjoyed their stay and sent a picture to their Virtuoso agent of the Eiffel Tower amenity.
"A Warm Welcome to The Pierre…and the World", Front Desk at The Pierre
A couple called the hotel prior to their stay asking for upgrades with their American Express package, but unfortunately due to the hotel occupancy, an upgrade was not available. Despite this, the guests were still very excited for their stay!
After their arrival, Sapphire mentioned to Emelie that she wanted to do something special for the couple since she found out that they were expecting their first baby. After brainstorming, Sapphire and Emelie came up with the most unique and caring gift idea. Sapphire wrote a card to the baby-to-be from Pierre the Penguin. The card said:
"Hi! I'm Pierre the Penguin and I'm so excited to meet you! I can't wait for you to arrive so that we can play together!"
Sapphire personally delivered this note with a Pierre penguin to the guests who were so touched and amazed by the gesture that Mr. Donn gave Sapphire a great, big hug! Now the little baby-to-be has a new friend who's patiently waiting for his or her arrival!
The Magic Shoes
Housekeeping at Taj Boston
Caroletta was on the floors when she saw a guest check into 627. It was a lady and a little girl. Caroletta went to meet the guests. After she introduced herself, she saw that the guest's little daughter was wearing special types of shoes. The shoes had flickering lights in them. SO each time the child walked around the lights will come and go. Caroletta told the little girl that she had magic shoes on. However, the little girl did not believe her and thought that she was simply teasing her. Caroletta immediately knew how to touch the heart of the little girl!
She sent over a plate of cookies to the room with a note which read "Your magic shoes told me that you like milk cookies". On the second day Caroletta placed a small teddy bear on the bed with a note "Your magic shoes told me that you like teddy bears". By now the little girl was completely convinced that her shoes are indeed magic! So when she saw Caroletta next, she ran to her and offered to show her the shoes. Caroletta had indeed touched her heart!
