Living the good life the Q way

Members can admire sweeping views of the East River and Manhattan skyline through floor to ceiling windows in each 1 Hotel Brooklyn Bridge room, a Q partner hotel

They can isolate the fine flavors and finishes of wine and they usually prefer liquor from the Old World.

The can properly pronounce the names embedded on their fancy timepieces, and it’s likely that the bags clutched safely in their arms were bought straight from Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré.

As author Kevin Kwan says, they are crazy, they are rich, and might occasionally decide to surprise you with a pizza delivery even if they are hundreds of thousands of miles away.

They are the fine wine drinkers, the frequent business class fliers, the vintage watch collectors, and the exclusive after-event partygoers.

And these are just a few ways to describe the young, executive, and entrepreneurial high-net worth Filipinos of today.

Or, at least, the current members of luxury concierge and management firm Quintessentially Lifestyle (Q).

This beautiful Nautilus watch set in 18-carat rose gold is on its way to a lucky Q member.

Most of its customers are young and used to the fast-paced lifestyle where everything is readily available at a click of a button.

But even as some of these newly wealthy consumers rise to affluent ranks, the climb doesn’t necessarily come with luxury goods knowledge and access, and that’s when Quintessentially Lifestyle shows its deck of cards.

The global firm is well-connected. It knows the top airlines, hotels and restaurants in every town, keeping tabs on contacts that make it easy for the company to book just about anything—including flights, jets, yachts—as it works in an international market that is getting crowded with luxury brands.

Originally from London, Quintessentially now prides itself on being the number one global luxury concierge being present in 65 countries to date. Locally, it has partnered with over 250 suppliers across all service and hospitality industries.

Its members get to enjoy exclusive special rates, free room upgrades and various establishment services, and even restaurant discounts. Members are also entitled to early check-ins and late check-outs at partner hotels, where some even include free or discounted spa treatments, personal trainers, gourmet chocolate and beauty products whichever part of the world they feel like staying in.

Q’s membership holders don’t even have to worry about the time zone they’re in. All of them can reach Quintessentially’s round-the-clock services.

Whether it’s a safari in Africa, the ultimate paradise in the Maldives, or the natural wonders of the Great Barrier Reef, Q organizes the ultimate vacation tailored just for its members.

“Booking your flight, finding a hotel, reserving a table at a famous restaurant, securing that corner room with a mesmerizing view—we’re able to do all that for you,” Quintessentially Philippines senior lifestyle manager Eya Lozada says.

“They don’t want to do these trivial things anymore. Essentially what we’re giving all our members is time. It’s giving them that extra time to go on a vacation, that extra hour to spend with their kids by coming home earlier for dinner. Whether it’s time to attend a yoga class or wine-tasting event, it’s giving them the luxury to enjoy what they want to do and what they’re passionate about.” she shares.

If there’s one word you’ll be afraid to tell some of the country’s rising entrepreneurs (third-generation CEOs among them), it would be the word “no”—and good thing the company doesn’t even have that on its vocabulary.

Quintessentially transforms its members’ imagination into its business—and continually grows from it. The lifestyle management company vows to make you forget the very definition of the word “impossible.”

Dining with the Pope at the Vatican, hanging out with your favorite band after their live concert, renting an entire island to yourself, sitting down with your favorite artists and personally getting to know about their newest creations, getting interior pieces before they’re even out in the market, scoring elusive front-row Miss Universe tickets—these are the kinds of bespoke experiences curated by the company that the members are willing to pay for.

Filipino members have been keen to use the lifestyle management firm not only for personal affairs but for their businesses as well. Quintessentially once locally sourced raw materials for a member’s company, and even arranged a photoshoot at a cargo port for another.

“In this business, our strength is our people. We have high-caliber people in the organization with years of experience in travel, tourism, finance and management. Excellence in customer service is at the heart of what we do,” Lozada says.

As it services the upper class market, Quintessentially is also able to provide data on its members’ buying and spending patterns, where most of its partner brand like Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Dior and Ferrari are all able to get target market insights.

Most of these luxury brands ask Quintessentially to do studies on specific age groups and income brackets that are already included in its database as the companies prepare marketing strategies for upcoming events. Q’s own members are even chosen to attend these brands’ exclusive launches and happenings.

The compay’s database is a pot of gold, a collective portfolio of affluent customers that have become part of a single network—the “Q network” as they call it—and it’s not only its members that benefit from it. Hundreds of its luxury suppliers are featured in its quarterly print magazine, and local offices come up with monthly hot lists and city guides for members to read and check out.

“We also help our suppliers,” Lozada shares. “Based on the consumer data we gather, which shows the types of requests we receive from a certain group of clients, we are able to know what our members like and look for and match them with the current promos and offers of our partner businesses. It’s a win-win for everyone.”—CONTRIBUTED