Private Members’ Clubs Reveal What Money Can’t Buy in Luxury

Not long ago, one of our members was applying to a well-known private club. The fee was never the issue. She had already secured her first referral from one of the club’s founding members, but the club asked for a second, and that is exactly where money loses its leverage. I knew a business contact I was sure she would get along with, since they shared a background in media. I introduced them, they hit it off, and he agreed to become her second referrer. Nothing about it was transactional. It worked because the connection was real. Early in my hospitality career, at the Cipriani Group and The Box, I saw what status used to look like in New York: bottle service at the club everyone was trying to get into. Today, the settings people value most are far quieter. They are private members’ clubs where people can have real conversations behind closed doors, knowing who else is in the room and trusting that what is said there stays there.

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