What the concierge serves up

At the beginning of this month, American Express Platinum credit card holders in Hong Kong reluctantly bid adieu to the company's concierge services, sparking complaints. Cardholders were upset that Amex was cutting its service - but not its fees.

"The fact that they're yanking the concierge and given the extreme prices that they're charging … the overall service is diminishing," says Marco Vaccaro, an American Express Platinum credit card holder, who will cancel his card at the end of the month.

Clearly, Amex touched a nerve. But those Hongkongers not holding a high-end credit card might wonder: What on earth is a concierge service? We decided to investigate. Essentially, the service was conceived to satisfy the requirements of business travellers who need to quickly find their way in foreign cities. Just like a hotel concierge, a credit card concierge can help you book a hotel, a flight or a table at a restaurant. The service caught on and has expanded to help users with small tasks such as sending flowers or scoring tickets at sold-out concerts.

Andrew Long, co-founder of Ten Group, a global lifestyle concierge company that helps handle requests for corporate clients such as Citibank and several luxury houses, says the concierge is a Western concept but one that is moving up higher on the list of Asian consumer demands. "The Asian business world is becoming a lot more international and a lot more wealthy Asians are going to London, New York and Paris. English may not be their first language. They can be very vulnerable about moving out of their comfort zone," he says.

In Asia, luxury retail requests feature prominently. "We get a lot of requests for luxury watches and particularly the [Hermes] Birkin handbag," says Long. "If you were to walk into a store [to ask for the bag], they probably wouldn't accept you on the waiting list and it is a two-year wait. It depends on the bag [colour, edition and material] but we can generally source a bag within a week to 10 days."

The three main credit card firms - MasterCard, Visa and American Express - all insist that their concierge can secure exclusive discounts at hotel chains, tables at top-notch restaurants and tickets to sold-out events.