Veteran butler pursues perfection throughout VIPs' stay

By Jun Ji-hye

Hong Jong-koo, room service outlet manager at the Grand Hyatt Seoul, has been working as a VIP butler at the luxury hotel for three decades, fulfilling the role of personal assistant for a number of VIP guests visiting Korea, including U.S. presidents, prestigious royal families, world-famous sports stars and heads of international organizations.

Hong Jong-koo / Courtesy of Grand Hyatt Seoul

VIP butlers at hotels act as a key point of contact for guests throughout their stay, providing tailored service and assistance with an exceptional eye for detail.

Grand Hyatt Seoul began to operate its presidential suite and VIP butler services in 1992, when only a few hotels offered such options in Korea.

Hong, who joined Grand Hyatt Seoul in 1986, became one of the hotel's first butlers, having handled VIP guests with care from their arrival to departure.

“A hotel butler should provide thoughtful, discreet and perfect services throughout the stay of VIP guests, satisfying all needs, including those they are not even aware of,” Hong said in an interview. “A week before a VIP guest arrives, the butler receives a massive amount of information about him or her. The information includes more than 100 lists such as allergies and taste, and the butler should learn them perfectly and reflect those in the service.”

Hong said he fine-tunes everything from beds and food, to travel destinations outside the hotel, in accordance with the personal preferences of the guests.

“The butlers are always under tremendous pressure during the VIP's stay, as we are required to pay keen attention to and anticipate the needs of the guests. We sometimes have to find products for the guests that are difficult to get at the hotel,” he said. “But it is a very rewarding feeling when the guests express their satisfaction.”

Hong said his most memorable guest was a former U.S. president, adding that, “The president asked me first to take a photo together on the day he left. At the time, he said he appreciated everything I had done for him during the stay.”