Whether it’s having one’s closest stocked with the latest collections seen on the runway or enjoying the view from premier seating at Wimbledon, Insignia is a luxury lifestyle management service that arranges “the highest caliber of products and services shrouded in a vow of discretion” to ensure its members’ privacy “is always protected.”
The company, which has served clients in Europe since 1996, has launched its invitation-only services in the U.S. Insignia’s clients include “ultra-high and high-net-worth” individuals that make up the so-called 1 percent.
And while Insignia’s concierge services focus on travel and lifestyle, wellness and shopping, the company also offers credit cards “with extraordinary spending power.” But these are not the typical plastic cards in most consumers’ wallets. Instead, Insignia provides its clients with personalized, jewel-encrusted cards made by artisans.
The firm touted the Insignia Jewelry Card Collection at the recent New York City Jewelry Week and was also a sponsor of the Angel Ball, a fund-raiser for Gabrielle’s Angel Foundation, which supports cancer research. “Handcrafted in Switzerland, the Jewelry Card is custom-made per the client’s request and features gold, diamonds, pearls and other precious stones,” the company said.
Richard Lewis, president of Insignia, said the company is in its 23rd year across Europe and is expanding to the U.S. “We aimed at the ultra-high-net-worth space with anybody really spending in excess of $1 million a year or so on their [credit] card,” Lewis said, adding the nearest competitor with the card business would be American Express’ Centurian product.
The Insignia Jewelry Card is custom-designed for each client.
Courtesy image.
For its part, Insignia adds a more personalized and bespoke approach. “We offer a dedicated personal assistant who is available to you 24/7,” Lewis told WWD, adding that it is always the same assistant who manages a client’s needs. “They will cater for any kind of request that’s imaginable, from restaurants to travel to shopping. They make sure everything is taken care of for the client.”
Each Insignia assistant is assigned to no more than six or eight cardmembers, who are “supported by a team of total luxury experts across each of the fields, whether it’s travel or shopping or access and nightlife, that type of thing.”
For the U.S. rollout, the company is offering the concierge service and lifestyle management portion with the credit card rolling out in 2020. For the U.S., Lewis told WWD the company believes “there’s a real sort of niche and requirement for the level of the service that we’re offering.” After the success of the services in Europe, Lewis said he believes “that the U.S. market is now really ready to receive our product.”
When asked about the process of taking on clients, assessing their needs and providing various lifestyle services, Lewis described it as “proactive and intuitive.”
“It is anticipatory in terms of how we get to know each of the clients, how we react and proactively see what they’re up to and help them,” he explained. “The service is like having an invisible companion alongside them, which is one point of contact for them. They can reach out via WhatsApp or e-mail or phone, whatever the client preference is, and our team will react to that. So it’s very, very personalized to each of the individual clients.”
Lewis said Insignia can arrange curated shopping experiences for them, and “can also close down stores and do private events.” Insignia also offers clients who are traveling personalized styling. The service involves packing apparel for each day of a client’s trip and then sending the luggage ahead so it’s waiting for them upon arrival.
The scope of personalized shopping includes sourcing sold out items or limited-edition pieces.
For the Jewelry Card, Insignia has a professional jewelry designer “sit with each of the clients to understand what their tastes are, the types of designs they want,” Lewis said. “People have family crests on the cards, or a sports team logo on. Anything, really. It is art, but ultimately a piece of jewelry.”
Let’s block ads! (Why?)