Younger Guests Are Redefining Luxury Service, Not Lowering the Bar

By Elena Vasquez

Two in three young people say they struggle to hold a conversation with someone outside their age group, according to Sebastian Knoerr, Director of Rooms at the Sloane Club, a premium members club in London. The finding frames the hospitality challenge: Millennials and Gen Z still value luxury, but they increasingly resist scripted formality, deference and gatekeeping.

Knoerr argues that younger members have had less practice with formal environments, not less desire for high standards. Formality, he says, must be taught explicitly rather than absorbed through exposure to adults. A 25-year-old and a member who joined in 1985 share the same need to feel correctly looked after, but recognize service through different tones.

He said: “The threshold, the discretion, the care, all of that stays exactly where it was. What changes is the script attached to it.” In practical terms, the club keeps service competence intact while giving staff flexibility in tone and delivery, so neither younger members nor long-standing members feel alienated.

Social media has accelerated that expectation. Laura Coughlin, a Dubai-based Millennial food journalist and culinary influencer, said: “Social media has been a big driver of this shift. We still value luxury, but ultimately, we’re looking for authenticity over formality.”

Her prescription is equally specific: more behind-the-scenes content, creator partnerships and genuine engagement in place of purely aspirational advertising. Approachable brands, Coughlin said, can remain premium while feeling more human. Guests increasingly want a real story and a personalized experience rather than polished, untouchable branding.

Food and beverage makes the change concrete. Kelly Licciardi, vice president at Restaurant Associates, a leading premium hospitality and dining provider, cited Tatiana by Kwame Onwuachi. Chef Kwame avoids tasting-menu theater, Licciardi said, and uses Afro-Caribbean and West African flavors to tell a personal story through food.

The dining room becomes a destination rather than a formality. Licciardi said affluent diners want substance and story over stiffness; Millennials and Gen Z reject artifice, not excellence, and seek food that feels authentic and shareable. Across sectors, guests still value quality, craftsmanship and exclusivity, but now attach those attributes to meaningful connection as much as ceremony.

Corporate events show the same demand in another setting. Neil Brooke, head of Food and Beverage at Regent’s University London, which also serves as a premium central London events venue, has seen corporate clients move from formal, scripted gatherings toward relaxed, social and participatory experiences.

Regent’s now receives far fewer fine-dining dinner inquiries and more events built around barbecues and international street food, often paired with outdoor activities and competitive socializing. Brooke said shared dining, interactive games and authentic food concepts now replace exclusivity as the main draws because engagement, authenticity and fun shape what guests remember.

What does this change for operators?

The operating change begins with training. Traditional luxury leaned on formal instruction, hierarchy and dense SOPs. A fixed SOP makes service sequences easy to teach and audit, but a “feel” resists quick measurement. Operators still need to set explicit thresholds for discretion, care, etiquette, product knowledge and technical execution.

They also need front-line staff who can exercise judgment and emotional intelligence without a prescriptive script. That changes labor planning: looser guidelines demand more capable judgment, not fewer service standards. Luxury operators must coach staff members to bring their personality into a guest dialogue while keeping the brand’s required standard intact.

Recruiting must change with it. Traditional luxury hiring prized teachable credentials—service sequences, etiquette, product knowledge, grooming standards and operational precision. Those skills remain essential, but increasingly function as table stakes rather than differentiators. Employers now need to screen for empathy, curiosity, warmth, adaptability and confidence in responding to each guest.

Some operators will value character as highly as credentials, making selection and training more judgment-intensive than enforcing a memorized sequence. The role also shifts from gatekeeper or prop to active participant. The traditional haughty maître d’, august concierge and patrician doorman give way to warm service professionals who create connection within the brand ecosystem.

Wine service illustrates the change. The traditional sommelier projected authority through encyclopedic knowledge of obscure appellations, vintages and producers, which could make unfamiliar guests feel that dinner was an examination. Reciting credentials and tasting notes often reinforced exclusion rather than pleasure.

The emerging “wine wonk” keeps that expertise but turns it into engaging conversation. A sommelier can explain a wine’s story, connect it to a guest’s tastes and create discovery, becoming a guide instead of a gatekeeper. The expert remains essential; the objective shifts from demonstrating superiority to helping guests feel comfortable enough to explore.

The coming test is whether hotel, restaurant and event operators can preserve discipline, standards and craftsmanship while empowering people to deliver them with warmth, personality and sincerity. Luxury still promises excellence and attention to detail, but its packaging now favors participation, cultural relevance and a conversation rather than a statement. The gatekeeping has to go; the standards cannot.