Y3S launch new concierge proposition

There are some clients who need that little bit extra, which is why Y3S has a dedicated proposition just for them Y3S Private Clients, offering a boutique service to high net worth clients who are looking for a little extra in terms of making things happen.

The 24/7 operation is headed up by director Michael Gallagher, Y3S’s most senior broker, who is assisted by another senior broker Rebecca Kenny and executive assistant Chloe Rush. “Despite our ‘standard’ service level to brokers already being way beyond what most packagers offer, there are those brokers and clients that require my team and me to lift the bar a few notches and offer
a concierge-type service where we are almost able to anticipate their needs and always deliver upon our promises with elegant efficiency,” explains Gallagher.

Y3S Private Clients operations take place within a closed office inside the headquarters, Gallagher says. “It uses the same lenders and the same processes, it’s the people who operate it and the relationships that they have that make the difference. You will not have seen an advert about Private Clients and there is no sign pointing out its existence within the office. It’s about the diamond tipped service it offers.”

MiLoanbroker

This concierge service is only available to brokers with whom Y3S has a mutually respectful and long-standing relationship – “It simply wouldn’t work otherwise” – Gallagher says, adding that it is not a ‘buy-your-way-in’ type club. Seamlessness and discretion are very, very important,” Gallagher notes, who recently celebrated a decade with the business and was awarded a luxury watch by the Y3S board.We go to huge lengths to make things happen but we don’t spend our time telling the client about such trivialities. We appear and we disappear, and we do it as quickly as possible.”

He says the proposition is about “service, service, service” and a good helping of discretion assured: “As a company we have always strived to surprise and delight our brokers and their clients by going above and beyond what would be deemed as normal service because we like to be able to relate the stories of excellent service during our presentations and in trying to win new business.

“Of course, we use our own knowledge of amazing service experiences to build on the formula. World-class service goes hand in hand with my favourite Y3S brand value: Speed. Speed equals efficiency, time not wasted. Our high net worth brokers and their clients don’t have time to waste and expect us to deliver first time with minimal effort on their part.”

Gallagher explains that most of the applications that the Private Clients team deals with have an element of the unusual to them.

“For example, we needed to get an ex-pat client in front of an English-speaking lawyer to sign a legal charge in order to complete on a loan, but due to her geographical location she could not find one,” he recalls. “And so, at our expense, we emailed her some air tickets and flew her to Bristol where we had arranged an appointment with a local lawyer.

“Our head courier was sent to the airport in an unmarked ‘Y3S Responsemobile’ (a fleet of company vehicles used to deliver and collect client documentation in super-quick time) to collect her, take her to the lawyer, get the documents signed, take her for lunch, return her to the airport and get her back to her country of choice the same day to continue going about her business. Our man headed 170 miles north straight to Together Money’s offices to get the loan completed.”

Perhaps contrary to expectations, such concierge services are not always expensive to provide. “We will do what we need to do to ensure that the service we offer is a seamless as possible,” Gallagher explains.

“I am a particular fan of good quality hotels that get to know their guests and delight them with the extra touches that may not cost a lot, but the thought and personalisation means the world.”

The nature of the offering means that Y3S Private Clients will remain a boutique proposition.

“In my opinion applying scale to our service would diminish quality,” says Gallagher. “That’s not to say we will not expand our offering, we will. We already have plans to add a fourth team member, but such a person would have to share the unspoken approach that we adopt.”

He stresses that any addition to the hand-picked team will be made as and when the time is right and when the right person presents themselves, and not through forced collaboration. It’s imperative that they share the qualities of the team, who Gallagher says have shown themselves to be extremely proficient at what they do and at working together.

“As we speak we are preparing a lawyer to head to Paris on the Eurostar to meet our client, a film director who is currently filming on location, in order to provide independent legal advice on a mortgage. Her schedule means that she would never get round to completing a case, so we’ll go to her. She says she’s never experienced such service levels.”