Launched in 2019, Kay & Burton Concierge Services is a curated suite of preferred partner services that has been developed to help both Kay & Burton clients and non-clients to take care of their property-related needs. 

The person behind Kay & Burton Concierge and all its preferred partners is Kate Emerson. Kate brings a wealth of experience to her role, having spent time working with the Ovarian Cancer Research Foundation working with ambassadors, fundraising, and assisting the foundation’s events and marketing campaigns. Kate commenced her career at the National Australia Bank where she spent over a decade in various front-line sales, marketing, HR and support roles within their Personal Bank, Business Bank and Private Bank divisions.   

As the Senior Manager - Kay & Burton Concierge Services, Kate works with a team of 6 to provide concierge services to Kay & Burton’s clients, agents and property managers. Kate is passionate about customer service, along with building deep and lasting relationships which are the cornerstones for the Concierge business. 

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LUXURY LIST spoke to Kate about the service.

Can you provide a brief snapshot of Kay & Burton Concierge Services?

Quite simply, we help our clients look after their property-related needs, which can involve anything from a simple request for a handyman, to coordinating assistance for preparation of a house for sale, by referring them to our curated network of qualified professionals, skilled-and-reliable tradespeople and creative talent.

What was the inspiration to start Kay & Burton Concierge?

Kay & Burton is renowned for its impeccable customer service and as a leader and innovator in our industry, we are always looking for ways to be of greater service to our clients. Seeing an increasing demand from our clients to have access to professionals and trades to meet their property-related needs, the idea of offering a concierge service to do so was born. Kay & Burton prides itself on being able to provide property-related solutions for our clients, and working alongside our sales agents and property managers, Kay & Burton Concierge plays an important part in delivering these solutions. 

What do you think attracts clients to access Concierge? 

Clients tell us that they are attracted to our Concierge for a variety of reasons but by far the most common are that it saves them time, that they get to speak to one of our team members, and that our list of trades and professionals is carefully vetted by us. 

Clients love that with one call, email, or enquiry through our website, they can access our team who will listen to their property-related requirements, and then refer and brief the most appropriate trade or professional from our extensive list. Clients compare this to the alternative of doing a google search and making multiple phone calls to track down a trade, who then may not be available, and say how much time coming to our Concierge team saves them. They love our personalised approach and we pride ourselves on taking care with and being supportive to each client. 

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Kay & Burton Concierge was born in September 2019 and is expanding exponentially with more and more Preferred Partners, now including services covering the Mornington Peninsula.

How has Covid affected Kay & Burton Concierge? 

Whilst demand for concierge services since the onset of COVID has continued to grow, we have seen some changes in the types of services that clients have been requesting.

One of the biggest impacts has been the increased attention clients have paid to their homes due to spending more time at home during the Victorian lockdowns.

Examples of ways this has impacted include:

• Greater demand for gardening and landscaping services. With clients wanting to make more use of their outdoor spaces, they have been looking to have these regularly maintained, replanted, and redesigned to be more functional. Our sales agents have seen increasing popularity in the creation of the outdoor room as an extension to the indoors and addition of more planned play spaces and outdoor exercise areas have been popular.
• Seeking the Concierge team’s assistance in ticking off the “to-do” list of items around the home that have required attention such as fixing cracks in plaster, repainting a room, freshening up carpeting or window furnishings, decluttering and selling unused items, pressure washing outdoor paving, or repairing grout in bathrooms. 
• Seeking advice on how areas for home-schooling and working from home could be created without having to do extensive renovation works, particularly in the styling of a home for sale.

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In addition, we have seen increased demand for our referred services such as a regular delivery of fresh flowers, produce and gift hampers and maintaining second homes owned by our clients given they were restricted in being able to travel to perform the maintenance themselves. In between lockdowns, demands for services associated with moving house were higher than usual, assisting many clients to move to coastal or rural areas and some interstate. 

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In some instances, restrictions limited the ability of referred Preferred Partners to assist clients immediately, but by having the Concierge team make the referral and introduce the client, preliminary discussions could be held by phone and works could be booked in so they were in front of the queue to be completed as soon as possible once restrictions eased. 

Has work from home changed the type of services most requested by clients?

There has been an increase in demand to offer more than one study space when styling a property for sale, often having what may have previously been a simple bedroom now styled to illustrate that the room could have multiple uses.

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Image: Kay & Burton Concierge Services are able to refer you to Preferred Partners for all of your property-related needs.    Source: Victoria Whitelaw Beautiful Flowers.

What are some of the most unusual/interesting requests Kay & Burton Concierge has looked after?

Some of the most unusual requests we have had have been: 

1. A snake catcher
2. Finding a breeder willing to sell pedigree livestock 
3. Moving a Chicken Coop

We encourage our clients to contact us no matter how unusual or complex they think their request may be, we have also organised:

• Cleaning out items from a house with only a few hours notice 
• Sound Proofing rooms
• Selling items/furniture
• Catering for a family function
• Repair and clean very delicate silk curtains 
• Dismantling and removing a large trampoline with only a couple of hours notice
• Repairing/replacing period fence decoration
• To move a piano
• Take their car to a service 
• To clean elaborate chandeliers
• Pet sitting

It is always worth making a call to us and we will always do our best to assist.

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Who can access Kay & Burton Concierge services?

We are open to help any current or prospective clients and welcome any opportunity to chat to property owners about how we can help take care of their property. We are naturally called on regularly by vendors and purchasers to assist them with various requests over what can be a very busy time, i.e. selling and/or buying a home and then moving house, but are also available to assist clients with smaller, one-off requests such as being referred to a handyman to hang a single artwork or a plumber to replace a washer in a tap. 

We usually find that once a client has used our Concierge service for one request, they return time-and-time again, with some quoting as having us “on speed dial”!

Are there additional costs for people to be referred to Kay & Burton Concierge’s list of Preferred Partners? 

There is no cost for clients seeking simple referrals through our Concierge, but clients need to pay our Preferred Partners for any services/works performed. 

What do you enjoy in your down-time?

Spending time with family including husband Tony and sons Charlie and Nick, catching up with friends, long walks with girlfriends (there’s been plenty of those in lockdown!), playing golf and learning bridge. Now that we can see travel opening up, I look forward to planning some trips and being able to spend time in coastal Western Victoria.

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How do people contact Kay & Burton Concierge? 

There are several ways to access Kay & Burton Concierge: 

1.    A phone call to 03 9825 2000

2.    Submitting an enquiry via our website https://kayburton.com.au/concierge

3.    Sending us an email to [email protected]

4.    Asking your Kay & Burton sales agent or property manager to put you in contact with us

Related reading:

Victoria Whitelaw Beautiful Flowers: bringing joy during difficult times

Carcierge: speed dial assistance for everything car related

Design and Diplomacy bring international experience into Melbourne real estate

Kay & Burton Concierge