Important Meetings with VVIPs
Bring your most valued guests to a Manor reserved for one party, with a butler in attendance
About Important Meetings with VVIPs
An important meeting with a VVIP is a use in which the antique Manor in Odaiba is reserved exclusively for up to six guests as a place to receive someone of importance, with a butler supporting you from reception to farewell. Tea, seating, equipment, chauffeured pick-up and a commemorative photograph are arranged to suit your purpose. The Manor is never let unattended; a butler is always present.
Respect is conveyed from the moment a name is asked at the door
To receive a guest for an important meeting is not to add grandeur, but to arrange the order of things so that your guest neither hesitates nor waits, and proceeds to the seat at ease. The butler asks the name at the door, bows, takes coat and belongings, and shows the guest to the room where the host is waiting.
The host may await the appointed hour within the Manor and leave the reception to the butler. In the Dining Room, seating is set to the number of guests; in the Study, a surface is kept clear for papers. The timing of tea, before the discussion begins or once it pauses, can be agreed in advance.
Queen's Butler is run by the Japan Butler Association. The Association has both male and female butlers in service; on the day, one butler attends, protecting the Manor and its collection while keeping a distance befitting the occasion.
From prior confirmation with the host to the farewell, how does it proceed?
We ask your purpose
Tell us the preferred date and time, the number of guests, your relationship with your guest, the purpose of the meeting and any equipment needed. The butler sets out the scope of preparation.
Settle arrival and pick-up
We confirm the arrival times of guest and host, where chauffeured pick-up is wanted and whether there is luggage, and decide whom to receive in which order.
Choose seating and room
From the Dining Room, the Fireplace Room and the Study, we propose a space to suit the number of guests and the nature of the discussion. Please share the role of each seat in advance.
Prepare the Manor
The butler checks the desktop, chairs, tea, lighting and screen. Where items you bring will be placed, and the backdrop for a commemorative photograph, are also decided.
Receive at the door
The butler asks the name, takes coat and belongings and shows the guest to the seat. The host may wait within the Manor.
Which space and seating suit the distance between you and your guest?
| Space | Guide to numbers | Arrangement | Suited to |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Dining Room | 3 to 6 | Around the long table, or facing across it | Formal introductions, important meetings of several, reviewing papers |
| The Fireplace Room | 2 to 4 | Sofa and chairs set at an angle | Discussions to be deepened, longer conversations |
| The Study | 2 to 3 | Across the leather-topped desk, or with papers to one side | One-to-one consultation, reviewing documents for signature |
| Two rooms | 2 to 6 | Moving from the Dining Room to the Study or the Fireplace Room | When talks divide into smaller groups after a general introduction |
We accommodate up to six guests. The seat of honour and the order of seating are proposed by the butler after asking your relationship with your guest and the order of entry and departure.
What is the background of the pieces that support a formal seating?
| The dining table | English, 1980s, yew. Overall length 2,286 mm, top height 787 mm |
|---|---|
| The study desk | English, 1980s, mahogany. Leather-inlaid top, W122 × D61 × H76.5 cm |
| The study chair | A captain's chair of nineteenth-century English origin. Black leather, with a low back and curved armrests |
| The double doors | Great double doors of French oak. Some 2,480 mm high, forming the threshold of the Dining Room |
| The Fireplace Room | Wine-red velvet sofa and chairs. A 120-inch screen is available when visuals are needed |
| On the table | A silver bell and candlesticks of brass and crystal. Placement and handling are the butler's charge |
Preparations included in the meeting
- One butler in attendance, with reception at the door and the taking of coats and belongings
- Seating arranged to your purpose in the Dining Room, the Fireplace Room or the Study
- Tea service, and preparation of lighting, Wi-Fi, power and the 120-inch screen
- A commemorative photograph taken with your own camera or smartphone
- Chauffeured pick-up for up to six guests (to and from five locations, included with the plan, availability confirmed at booking)
What we cannot undertake
- Interpreting, stenography or the taking of minutes
- Advice on contracts or legal matters
- Meals. You are welcome to bring your own food and drink
- Use of the Manor unattended
Helpful to share in advance
- The names of guest and host
- Arrival times and the order of reception
- The role of each seat
- Equipment and papers to be used
- Preferred timing for tea
- Wishes for a commemorative photograph and chauffeured pick-up
How does the butler support reception, tea and pauses?
Reception begins with a name
We confirm each arrival, take coat and belongings and show the guest to the seat where the host is waiting. Several arrival times are handled in turn.
Read moreTea at a moment that does not interrupt
We ask whether tea is wanted on arrival, before the meeting begins or during a pause. The butler carries the tea things and sets them clear of the papers on the table.
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Change the space during a pause
You may move from consultation in the Study to the Fireplace Room and take fresh tea. The butler prepares the next room before showing you through.
Read moreConfidentiality is kept through exclusive use and the ordering of movement
The confidentiality of a meeting rests not on words alone, but on the Manor being used by one party and the movements of participants and butler being settled in advance. When you book, we ask how the discussion will proceed and agree the timing of tea, the signal for a pause and where the butler will wait.
The Manor is never let unattended; the butler oversees the collection and the entrances. Papers and equipment you bring remain in your own keeping, and at the close we count them together. If anyone other than the participants is expected, please share their name and time in advance.
If papers are to be shown on screen, we check the view from each seat and the arrangement of the table before you begin. Where material involves switching screens or sound, please test it on the actual equipment beforehand. For a commemorative photograph after the meeting, we move to a composition in which no papers or screens appear and photograph with your own device.
What backdrop for the commemorative photograph?
Before the double doors
Everyone standing before the double doors some 2,480 mm high. The butler attends to attire and positions.
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Around the study desk
A photograph at the seat where the consultation concluded, taken after confirming that no confidential papers or screens remain in view.
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Before the farewell
A photograph with the butler once coats are returned. Taken with your own device in the brief moment before you leave for your next engagement.
Read moreQWhat is the maximum number of guests?
We accommodate up to six guests. Please tell us the total including host, guest and any attendants.
QIs it suitable for highly confidential discussions?
The Manor is reserved for one party, and the butler's position and the timing of service can be agreed in advance. Papers and equipment remain in your own keeping; please count them before leaving.
QCan you receive guests arriving from abroad?
Yes. Please tell us arrival times, seating, chauffeured pick-up and the number of interpreters attending. Where professional interpreting is required, please arrange it yourselves.
QMay I bring something other than tea?
You are welcome to bring food and drink. As we do not serve meals, please bring whatever you need.
QMay I request a female butler?
Male and female butlers are in service. Please tell us your preference when booking; we confirm availability before making the introduction. Please also tell us your guest's name and how you wish them received.
QWhich device is used for the commemorative photograph?
The butler takes your own camera or smartphone. Background and positions are arranged, and we check that no papers or screens appear before photographing.
About using The Studio
- The manor is never let unattended. A butler is present for every booking, and keys are not handed over
- You are welcome to bring your own food and drink. We do not provide meals
- Please use the antique furnishings under the butler's guidance. The armour, hall clock, porcelain and silver are handled by the butler
- Please consult us in advance about loud sound or the use of naked flames
- Prices shown include tax
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Preparation begins with the name of your guest.
Tell us the date and time, number of guests, your relationship with your guest, seating, equipment, and any wish for chauffeured pick-up and a commemorative photograph. The butler will propose the order of the day.