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Monday, January 20, 2020

A day in the life of a personal assistant to the ultra-wealthy, who spends her time tracking down the perfect Cartier watch for a client's wife and planning out a surprise ski trip to the 'Aspen of Japan'

[Jennifer King Insignia PA]Jennifer King/Insignia * Jennifer King is a personal assistant working at Insignia, a luxury lifestyle management service for millionaires and billionaires. * Insignia was founded in Europe in 1996 and expanded stateside last year. Jennifer is one of the employees in Insignia's New York City office. * As one of several PAs in charge of a handful of Insignia's millionaire and billionaire clients, Jennifer spends her day fielding client requests. * That includes everything from picking up a special watch from Cartier's VIP room to personally arranging a restaurant reservation at the Polo Bar, where she ensures her client gets their favorite table and favorite bottle of Champagne. * Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories. When you're exorbitantly rich, you can afford not to fret over things like your 15th wedding anniversary — at least if you're an Insignia member. Insignia is a personal concierge service for ultra-wealthy individuals that was established in Europe in 1996. The company recently made its way stateside, opening up a New York City office in 2019 to better cater to its US-based clientele. For the most part, Insignia's US president Richard Lewis told Business Insider, clients mostly use their service to book travel. But the company's fleet of personal assistants can (and do) take care of "any and all requests" a member may throw their way. Here's what a typical day looks like for Jennifer, one of the personal assistants in Insignia's New York office, from waking up at 7 a.m. and heading into the office half an hour before office hours officially begin to delivering Cartier and Bergdorf's purchases made on an Insignia client's behalf to a Blade heliport in Manhattan. JENNIFER WAKES UP AT 7 A.M. AND IS OUT THE FRONT DOOR BY 8 A.M. Jennifer King/Insignia If she eats breakfast at all before heading out for the day, it's a light one. "For breakfast, I always just grab a Greek vanilla yogurt or a banana in the rare occurrence I've gone grocery shopping," Jennifer told Business Insider. Her commute to the office from where she lives in lower Manhattan takes about 25 to 30 minutes by subway, but sometimes more, depending on train delays. THOUGH WORK DOESN'T TECHNICALLY START UNTIL 9 A.M., JENNIFER AIMS TO BE IN BY 8:30 EVERY MORNING AND STARTS HER DAY USING THAT FIRST HALF-HOUR TO CATCH UP ON EMAILS AND GET HERSELF COFFEE. Jennifer King/Insignia "Other Insignia employees trickle in between 8:30 and 8:59 a.m. But by 9:01, you're late, because the morning huddle happens at exactly 9 a.m. every day," she told Business Insider. The "morning huddle" is Insignia's daily all-hands meeting with every single employee, including upper management. Right now, Insignia (which just expanded stateside earlier this year) has about 10 employees in its New York City office. The company's experts in shopping, travel, and dining are the ones "on the ground," handling client requests in person, while personal assistants like Jennifer coordinate and liaise. FOR HER FIRST CLIENT REQUEST OF THE DAY, JENNIFER HAS TO HEAD OVER TO CARTIER TO PERSONALLY PICK UP A GIFT. Jennifer King/Insignia The transaction happens in Cartier's VIP room, a private area for clients who prefer a bit of privacy in their jewelry shopping. SEE THE REST OF THE STORY AT BUSINESS INSIDER SEE ALSO: * Here's how much Australia's billionaires have donated to relief efforts for the wildfires that have destroyed 25 million acres of land and have killed at least 28 people * Meryl Streep is selling her NYC penthouse at a 26% discount. Take a look inside the $18.25 million condo, which spans an entire floor and has a landscaped wraparound terrace. * Here's where the royal family gets their money SEE ALSO: A DAY IN THE LIFE OF THE TOP REAL-ESTATE BROKER IN MIAMI, WHO COMMUTES BY FERRY TO THE RICHEST ZIP CODE IN THE US AND SOLD MORE THAN $189 MILLION OF LUXURY HOMES IN 2018 DON'T MISS: A DAY IN THE LIFE OF A 34-YEAR-OLD EARLY RETIREE WHO LIVES IN NYC, GREW HIS NET WORTH TO $1.25 MILLION IN JUST 5 YEARS, AND WAKES UP AT 7:30 A.M.


READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.businessinsider.com