The Wish Granters

With long strides, Hänßgen steps inside. Up the stairs, red carpet underfoot, through the revolving door, and to the left toward the lobby. The heels of his dress shoes click on the polished stone floor. Two guests are checking in, two large shopping bags parked on the floor: an orange Louis Vuitton and a white Prada. Hänßgen walks to his post, the concierge lodge. A compact desk built seamlessly into the dark wood panelling – like a refined kiosk with a counter where guests can obtain almost anything they desire. “Small but perfectly formed,” he says. Arrayed across the front are the front pages of daily newspapers: Le Figaro, FAZ, The New York Times, Hamburger Abendblatt.

Hänßgen repeatedly glances up, keeping a watchful eye on the lobby. His face is clean-shaven, his short hairstyle neat and precise. As he does every day, he wears his uniform: a navy pinstripe suit, as specified by the internal dress code. Today, he has chosen a pink tie. On his lapel, two crossed golden keys glint in the light. They are the symbol of the exclusive association “Les Clefs d’Or”, a benchmark for excellent service and discretion. Worldwide, more than 4,000 concierges belong to it. In Hamburg, there are 19; eleven of the city’s top hotels still rely on at least one service expert. Together with his colleague Linus Eckmann, Hänßgen – in his mid-twenties – is among the youngest keyholders in the country. He originally intended to study psychology after graduating high school, but while backpacking through Southeast Asia, he discovered his passion for the hotel industry in the world’s lobbies. Following his training, the lodge at the Vier Jahreszeiten was vacant. Together with Linus Eckmann, whom he has known since day one at the hotel, he developed a proposal, convinced the management, and secured the role.

Hänßgen has barely been in his lodge for two minutes when the first guest appears. “Do you have a postage stamp for me?” Hänßgen nods and accepts the letter. “We’d be delighted to take care of that for you.” The €1.20 charge is something the hotel would never bill. No sooner has the guest left than the next one inquires about a harbour cruise. Hänßgen recommends a combined route with a detour into the Speicherstadt. “However, tour times here depend on the tide,” notes the Hamburg native. To an American guest asking for a dinner recommendation at the traditional Fischereihafen Restaurant, he suggests: “You have to try the smoked eel.” The best Labskaus is served at Hummer Pedersen – his soft Hamburg accent giving away his local roots. Hänßgen picks up the black corded telephone: “Good day, this is Luis Hänßgen calling from Hotel Vier Jahreszeiten in Hamburg. My colleagues mentioned that you’d like to attend the Tarzan musical in September,” he says warmly into the receiver. “We’d be more than happy to assist you with that. I look forward to hearing back from you.”

Last-minute ticket requests, harbour cruises, walking tours – this is daily business in the concierge trade. As a rule: “Everything is made possible,” says Hänßgen. “At least, everything that is permitted.” A regular guest in the Presidential Suite insisted on reading a printed Arabic newspaper every morning. The team discovered that not a single one was printed in Germany. A solution was needed: the digital layout arrived early in the morning via email from London, and they had the pages printed themselves. The copy was placed punctually on the breakfast table every single day. Hänßgen appreciates the team spirit within the hotel: “Everyone pulls together. Even when it comes to extraordinary requests.”

Simply asking – that is what Hänßgen prefers anyway. When someone relies more on Google or chatbots than on his personal expertise for Hamburg recommendations, he finds it hard to relate. “But you can’t force anyone to be happy.”

Hotel Manager Jan Peer Lehfeldt walks past and stops by the concierge lodge for a quick chat. They briefly talk football; BVB is playing against Eimsbüttel today. Is Hänßgen a fan himself? “Only for professional reasons.”

Lehfeldt is also a Hamburg native. He completed his training as a hotel specialist at the Vier Jahreszeiten in the early 2000s, worked around the globe, and returned to his hometown in 2023.