By KARI MUTU

More by this Author

Sheila Tonui has a passion for bespoke guest service. Leading a team of butlers at the Hemingways Hotel in Nairobi, Sheila wants every guest to have a personalised hotel stay.

“My job is about knowing guests’ needs and meeting them,” she says.

Butler service as a vocation dates back to upper-class European homes and hotels in the 17th Century.

Most hotels have a bell person, a luggage porter, room service personnel and a concierge desk to coordinate external services. Butlers combine all these roles and more.

“We want to minimise the people who interact with the guest, make sure their stay is as private and personal as possible,” says Sheila.

She studied hotel management at the Kenya Utalii College in 2008 before joining a team of 12 butlers at the Hemingways Nairobi where she underwent three months of training.

Eye for detail

An indepth understanding of the hotel is essential because, “butler service is intertwined with other departments, especially with food and beverage. We run room service, the drinks service in the suites and handle the housekeeping requests,” Sheila says.

All 45 suites at Hemingways Nairobi are named after an important person in Kenya’s history such as Karen Blixen, Jomo Kenyatta, explorer David Livingston and American author Ernest Hemingway after whom the hotel is named.

“As part of training we had to master each person and their significance,” she says.

Concierge duties also intersect into butler work hence one must have proper telephone etiquette, understand check-in procedures and billing instructions.

“Integrity is important for a good butler in terms of discipline, time management and how you conduct yourself. And you must have an eye for detail.”

When guests arrive, Sheila or one of her team members meets them at the reception and greets each person by name.

“Addressing one by name initiates a personal conversation but it has to be done in a professional manner," she says.

She took me on a tour familiarising me with the room facilities, bathroom amenities and how to operate the pop-up television.

Juggling requests

As a butler she offers to unpack a guest’s luggage and pour them a drink from the mini bar if they so wish. She also talks about the restaurant, bar, swimming pool, hotel shop and in-house spa.

I was amazed at her knowledge of random things, like the merchandise suppliers at the gift shop or major events around the world.

“I have to know because sometimes a guest will ask about an item they saw in the shop or a sports event somewhere,” she says.

Luggage is transported to the rooms using an electric hotel car driven by the butlers, who must have a driving license.

On a typical day, Sheila is handling arriving and departing guests, collecting laundry, delivering room service, returning shoes after cleaning, organising luggage storage and making restaurant reservations or spa bookings.

“At times I am juggling two or three requests so working as a team is important,” she notes.

When guests want to tour Nairobi, it falls on Sheila’s team to make recommendations and organise with a driver.

Maximising experiences

She arranges VIP room amenities for high profile guests and special touches for honeymooners. She must also know individual guests’ needs in order to maximise their experience.

Not every day is smooth sailing and at times she deals with demanding requests, people who do not want butler service or guests who only wants a butler from their gender for cultural reasons.

However, most people appreciate the personalised assistance.

“When you come into the role you realise the work is intense and some people choose to leave,” says Sheila.

She has persevered and grown to love the job, especially getting to meet different people.

Her good customer service clearly made a good impression on management and in 2017, she was appointed the head butler of Hemingways Nairobi.