When Jaclyn Sienna India founded Sienna Charles, her boutique travel concierge, in 2008, she adopted a “fake it until you make it” approach. Initially, she pretended to have high-profile clients despite having none. Calls from potential clients asking for common trips were turned down with the excuse of being fully booked with high-net-worth individuals.
Sixteen years later, her strategy paid off. Today, Sienna Charles boasts an impressive clientele that includes former President George W. Bush and celebrities like Mariah Carey. These exclusive services are reserved for those earning over $100 million annually. So what does Jaclyn offer that they can’t secure on their own?
“My clients are very powerful and connected, but what makes things happen is care and leading from the heart,” Jaclyn explains. Drawing from her five years of experience as a server, she emphasizes the importance of understanding and caring about people’s needs.
Sienna Charles maintains a “black book” with over 2000 industry contacts, including those in yachts, hotels, and high-end restaurants. This extensive network allows Jaclyn to curate unparalleled travel and dining experiences for her clients, fulfilling visions they can’t achieve due to time, access, and creative limitations.
Her focus isn’t solely on luxurious settings but ensuring genuinely rewarding experiences. For instance, she prefers the innovative dining at Single Thread Farms over the famed French Laundry. She crafts unique events, like a candlelit dinner in Versailles or brunch on the Arc de Triomphe, sometimes pairing meals with meetings with notable personalities, such as breakfast with the Hermes family or lunch with the Fendi family in Rome.
In addition to grand gestures, Jaclyn also pays attention to small comforts. For former President Bush’s trip to Ethiopia, she ensured he had peanut butter and non-alcoholic beer, and arranged for children to greet him in Texas Rangers caps.
Jaclyn underscores her devotion to personalized service by engaging with everyone, from cab drivers to restaurant staff, to find the most intriguing options for her clients. Her goal is to offer authentic experiences, not just luxury. “The world is not just luxury. It’s everything, and my clients want authentic experiences,” she says.