Concierge services provider teams-up with brokerage giant.

Executive Concierge, a Manhattan-based provider of concierge services, recently entered into an agreement with one of Cushman & Wakefield's Midtown properties to provide its unique service to the brokerage giant.

Founded in New York City in 1997, Executive Concierge provides full concierge service to the individual tenants of commercial office buildings in New York City. The company's staff is uniquely equipped to handle both small and large tasks, from arranging for flower deliveries and purchasing event tickets to managing corporate outings, catering and travel.

Patti Kanner, a New York real estate veteran, and Wendy Lichtenberg, a Wall Street marketing professional, formed Executive Concierge to provide owners and managers of commercial office buildings a competitive edge in tenant service.

"It is critical for building owners to offer high quality services to attract and retain desirable tenants," said Kanner, managing partner and co-founder of Executive Concierge. "A Class A lobby and a Class A location are not enough - tenants are in search of additional amenities."

Executive Concierge provides its services to large corporate tenants and to the owners and managers of commercial office buildings who want to provide added value to tenants. The company services more than 8,000 employees in more than two million square feet of New York office buildings. Along with Cushman & Wakefield, Executive Concierge works with The Paramount Group, Inc., a New York City-based owner, developer and manager of commercial property, and regularly services the employees of such building tenants as Goldman Sachs, Daiwa Bank, Lucent Technologies and the Bank of New York.

Lichtenberg, who founded Executive Concierge with Kanner, said "Our service is particularly attractive to employers who, after a decade of downsizing, have limited support staffs. We are able to assist executives who are accustomed to the luxuries a large staff supplies."

Executive Concierge provides buildings with a kiosk staffed with a trained professional. Located in a building's lobby or in a central office location, these on-site concierges are prepared to handle a variety of client requests with immediacy.

"Each tenant in an Executive Concierge building has access to the service," Kanner said. "We assist everyone from CEOs of Fortune 500 companies to administrative assistants of Internet start-ups."

Executive Concierge provides subscribers a wide array of services including: ticketing for Broadway shows, sporting events, concerts and other special happenings; corporate catering; corporate and personal girl consulting and purchasing; the creation and delivery of balloon bouquets and baskets for all occasions; travel planning; card writing and dry cleaning. Executive Concierge will also arrange for custom tailors to visit a client's office or home to design suits, shirts and other garments.

Completely computerized with a database linked to countless service providers throughout Metropolitan New York, Executive Concierge leverages technology to provide its clients with swift solutions and answers. The principals of Executive Concierge are also available to troubleshoot the occasional "impossible" situation, using their connections to find hard-to-get tickets and secure rooms at the city's most coveted hotels.

A feature unique to Executive Concierge is a "Reminder Service," which is intended to help individuals avoid uncomfortable moments of forgetfulness. Tenants in an Executive Concierge building are given the opportunity to fill out a profile listing important dates and personal interests. These items are entered into Executive Concierge's central information system, a customized database featuring a scheduling function.

At a client's request, Executive Concierge will e-mail or telephone individuals to remind them of such important events as birthdays of co-workers, scheduled charitable dinners and other special occasions.

"We formed Executive Concierge to improve the marketability of our clients' buildings," said Lichtenberg. "By allowing executives and their employees to focus on their jobs while we run the errands, Class A buildings provide A-plus service. This gives our clients an edge in the very competitive world of New York City commercial leasing."

With more than 18 years' experience in sales, operations, and management of real estate, Kanner understands the importance of lasting relationships and is adept at maintaining high-quality service providers. Lichtenberg spent 12 years at Wall Street-based Shearson Lehman Hutton as marketing and national sales manager of the financial giant's Unit Trust Department.