Are You Being Served?

What sets the truly wealthy apart from the merely well-off? according to a recent series in The New York Times, it's not necessarily the Jaguars in their driveways or the Cartiers strapped on their wrists. The expansion of credit (and aspirations) mean even those in the middle class can now possess luxury status symbols, and in our dress-down culture, the billionaire from Port Royal may show up at the mall in the same Gap jeans and hooded sweatshirt as the kid behind the pizza counter. No, what separates the mega-wealthy from the masses, said the Times, is the number of personal services and exclusive experiences they enjoy, and those services are growing at an explosive rate.

The poor may be getting poorer, and the middle class may be struggling to stay afloat, but those at the top of the money pyramid-the hyper-rich, as the Times calls them-are enjoying unprecedented prosperity. Thanks to fortunes made in technology, the stock market, the sale of family businesses-and let's not forget those tax cuts-the number of American households with assets of more than $10 million has grown by 400 percent since 1980-after adjusting for inflation-and they're pulling away from the rest of the country at an accelerating rate. Their share of the nation's income has doubled in the last 20 years, according to the Times, so that the wealthiest 0.1 percent of America now possesses 7.4 percent of the country's wealth.

All that money has led to a new gilded age of conspicuous consumption, multiple mansions and a lifestyle, often behind the gates of ultra-exclusive communities, that includes a level of services and rarified experiences once reserved for the Rockefellers and royal families; and nowhere is that more evident than in Naples, where "the wealth density [households with more than $3 million in investable assets] is about triple the national average," according to Gerri Moll, president of Bank of America of Southwest Florida. "It's really accelerated in the last five to 10 years." Estimates put the number of households in that category at about 14,100 for Sarasota County south to Collier.

In classic trickle-down fashion, the presence of so much wealth is creating prosperity for many other Southwest Floridians who provide goods and services for the expanding privileged class, and it's also increasing the variety of businesses and services available to everyone. Only the ultra-wealthy, for example, can afford a private governess, but the merely well-off can indulge in manicures, hire a caterer for a special event or spring for cosmetic surgery.

Here's a look at some of the personal services that are becoming part of the Southwest Florida lifestyle.

The old-fashioned Jeeves-type butler still exists, but a multitasking household or estate manager seems to fit the needs of today's wealthy better, says Mary Louise Starkey, owner and CEO of the Denver-based Starkey International Institute for Household Management. Such a manager could oversee housekeeping, landscaping, entertaining, security and care of children, guests and pets, she says, and sophisticated "administrative skills are essential."

The need for household managers has grown with the pace of people's lives and the size of their homes, explains Naples native and Starkey graduate Tom Miller: "If you build a 30,000-square-foot house, you have to have a staff."

Miller was in college when he started keeping house for families in Port Royal. In his 21 years in the business, he's done everything from purchasing boats to managing multimillion-dollar remodeling projects. He now works for a family in Arkansas, where he not only manages the household and its staff, he also books private jets, plans family vacations and special events, and occasionally prepares meals.

Part-time residents are spending longer periods of time in their Naples' homes, says Werner Leutert, owner of the city's Home Staff Network, a placement service for household staff nationwide. "The level of service is going up because they're here for longer periods of time."

In addition, new money is starting to replace the "old guard, legacy families," and the newly wealthy spend more lavishly, says Starkey. "They want the best of everything, and they're not afraid to pay for it."

Yesterday's wealthy tended to employ staffs with tightly defined job descriptions-the social secretary, the scullery maid, the chauffeur-but today's wealthy families often rely on a right-hand person who can do it all. Reneé Esquer is a perfect example. She's household manager-and private yacht captain-for a Naples family.

On the water, her responsibilities include driving the vessel, arranging dockage and extracurricular activities, "and anything that has to do with the yacht itself, from the engine room to making them a sandwich or fixing them a drink," she says. "You learn to not only manage everything, you become a plumber, woodworker or electrician."

Since her employers, who travel frequently, bought a larger house in Port Royal, Esquer's duties have been more land-locked-working with subcontractors, setting up appointments and "making sure the house is in operable condition."

John Scot Mueller, president of venture capital and real estate development company Relleum Inc., also relies on a multitasking personal assistant, Margaret Short.

"Her job can be anything," says Mueller, from "making sure something gets repaired at the house or meeting a workman or picking up Christmas cards. Anything that gives me more time to run my business and concentrate on going to meetings is a gift to me."

Short handles everything from personal errands and travel arrangements to helping Mueller coordinate details for the auction room he organized and the vintner dinner he hosted for this year's Naples Winter Wine Festival.

Marissa Collections, a boutique in Naples on Third Street South, is known for bringing couture and a high level of individual service to its clients. Associates help customers build outfits from designer collections from New York to Italy, photograph and catalogue a client's wardrobe (or wardrobes, for those with multiple homes) and help them "edit" their collections.

The business prides itself on offering the same level of service to all customers, says store manager Ingrid Etzold. But for those who request it, associates go that extra step and even help customers pack for trips.

"They are all about long-term relationships. They want to work with you to help you define what your style is," says long-time customer Jan Goldsmith, adding that she has the option of shopping anywhere from New York to Chicago, Minneapolis or Miami.

One doesn't shop by size at Marissa, she says; you pick what you like, and seamstresses tailor it. "You always look like you're wearing couture clothing," says Goldsmith. Co-owner Marissa Hartington and her staff also keep Goldsmith's wardrobe fresh-rediscovering pieces in her closet and pairing them with something new.

"Marissa travels constantly, so she knows [what you'll need]," says Goldsmith. Whether you're going "to Paris or the Dalmatian coast," she can choose clothes and accessories appropriate for the climate. "Most recently I traveled to Latvia and Lithuania, and she came in and edited down my clothes for time of year and places I was going to be visiting," says Goldsmith. "We were visiting everything from the killing fields and concentration camps to going to beautiful restaurants. Every step of the way I was dressed impeccably."

Tom and Theresa Wajnert found an even more convenient way to avoid packing hassles. They are clients of Garde Robe in New York, which stores and catalogues wardrobe items and delivers them wherever their clients desire.

The Wajnerts had a home in Naples and an apartment in New York City before deciding to build a home in Napa Valley as well. "But we go to New York all the time," says Tom Wajnert, so they wanted to keep some clothing there. A concierge referred them to Garde Robe, and the Wajnerts have been happy clients for the past four years. "I just thought it was the most fabulous service in the world," says Tom Wajnert.

The company stores wardrobe items in a secure, air-conditioned space, professionally photographs them and catalogues them in a "cyber closet" on the company Web site, says vice president Doug Greenberg. "Anytime, day or night around the world, clients can log on, view what we have stored and request what they want to be hand delivered," he says.

"It's always immaculate, the shoes are always shined, the clothes always clean," says Wajnert. In addition, Garde Robe has had shirts made for Wajnert, and he's even had them Christmas shop for Theresa, he says. "They know my wife's tastes."

It was through Pascal Riffaud, a former concierge at such hotels as St. Regis in New York, that the Wajnerts found Garde Robe. Now they are among the clients of his Personal Concierge International.

"[My] company provides everything you may wish, from restaurant reservations to putting a perfect trip together, transportation all over the world, a personal shopper, to getting an appointment with the best plastic surgeon in New York," says Riffaud, who also has attended and helped arrange auction lots for the Naples Winter Wine Festival.

On a recent trip to New York, he got reservations for Tom Wajnert at Il Mulino, a culinary hotspot. "If you don't know anybody you don't get in," says Riffaud. Annual membership in Personal Concierge International costs $4,000.