Keeping Them Happy

0



Timothy Chrisman


Founder

Chrisman & Co. (downtown)

‘The key is to not let people get overwhelmed. You can really start the whole thing off wrong by saying, ‘When you get to LAX just grab a cab.’ We make sure there’s a car service that picks them up at the airport, so we can kind of control what happens. People think they can have a meeting in Orange County and spend the afternoon in Woodland Hills. You have to tell them that’s like going from Portland to Seattle. We’ve started gathering things downtown that will impress people. Staples Center is a great arena and Dodger Stadium is a great venue. If they’re big food people, always try to take them to the Pacific Dining Car. If we determine that someone loves concert halls, I guarantee you that between all of our resources, we’ll get tickets.”



Julia Gouw



Chief Financial Officer

East West Bank (San Marino)

‘Many of our guests love to go to Lawry’s they’ve built great name recognition in Asia. People like to walk around, shop in the brand-name stores so they want to go to Rodeo Drive or South Coast Plaza. Many of our clients want to see cultural things, so we’ll arrange a building tour: the Huntington Library is a main attraction. They want to see the Disney Concert Hall, and then you can take them to MOCA because it’s so close.”



Sam Cesar



Executive Assistant

Rubin Postaer & Associates (Santa Monica)

‘Most clients come in for a short period of meetings, so they don’t have a lot of spare time. But when they do, they all want to go to Venice Beach. That’s fine, but we usually recommend they eat dinner in Santa Monica. If they want some local flavor, we’ll send them to Chez Jay for dinner.”



Cherie Conrad



Recruiting Manager

Kirkland & Ellis LLP (downtown)

‘For law students or young recruits, it’s the Standard, because that’s the cool, hip place to be. But if I’m bringing in a partner from another city, they’re not going to stay there. The ones really in the know stay at the Ritz Carlton in Pasadena. That is just a phenomenal property.”



John Morris



Partner

GKM Ventures (West L.A.)

‘You’re always worried about where their hotel is in relation to their first meeting of the day, because people don’t think about that and travel agents are horrible about that. We’re likely to take them to dinner, but I can’t say that we’re real big entertainers. We’ll take them to Beverly Hills or to a restaurant on the water. There’s easy scenery and the town shows well. People are often encouraged to stay an extra day, and we’ll send them up to Malibu.”



Lee Helper



President

Bender/Helper Impact (West L. A.)

‘I’ll often go for a hike with a business associate or a client. I recommend Will Rogers State Park or Temescal Canyon those are great places to talk business. Every once in a while I’ll take them for a bike ride along the bike path by the ocean. It’s not for everybody, but some people are more open to that. There are the usual great places Shutters, Casa Del Mar, the new Ivy and I like places off the beaten track like Typhoon at Santa Monica Airport.”

No posts to display