He Was Blocked At A Hotel Reception For His Clothes, But He Was The Owner, The Undercover Boss.
Stanley, an elderly gentleman, is barred from the front desk of a five-star hotel because his clothes and appearance were deemed inappropriate and not up to the standard of the hotel. But when he was finally able to reveal his identity, no one could believe that such a fuss had been made.
In today’s touching story, we will learn about Stanley, his story and how being kicked out of a hotel reminded him of the most important things about relationships and communicating with people. An elderly and exhausted gentleman stopped on the sidewalk and looked at the five-star hotel across the street.
He was wearing ordinary clothes and a pair of shoes that were already worn out from work. The gentleman walked through the hotel’s revolving door and into the lobby.
The space was immaculate. Modern decorations, padded seats, and a shiny floor that reflected the light coming in through the large windows.
At the reception desk was a well-dressed woman standing with impeccable posture and light make-up, showing off a pair of heels that looked very expensive. When the man in plain looking clothes and worn out shoes stopped in front of her, the woman looked him up and down.
It took less than two seconds for her to judge that this gentleman was not a guest nor a customer. She thought he was someone from the street who needed some kind of help or maybe information and prayed that his presence would not disturb the guests.
It seemed that at any moment the old man’s shoe was going to break open. To top it off, he had two sweat stains under his armpits and an unshaven beard that made him look even older and more dirty.
He approached the well-dressed receptionist and she tensed up, wondering what would happen next. The old man greeted her and said that he needed a room for the day.
As he said this, he took his wallet out of his pocket. It was an old wallet too, and it didn’t seem to the woman that there were many large bills inside.
She saw only a credit card and what appeared to be a series of documents. Nothing to indicate that he was like most guests at that hotel.
The woman then indicated to him that he need not look any further for money, cards, or anything else in his wallet, because there would be no way to book a room for that day.
She said:
“All rooms are already occupied.”
The old man put his wallet away and took a good look at the girl behind the desk. Her name tag said Mariana.
He said:
“Look, Mariana, I’ve been through a lot to get here.”
“I can no longer go around town looking for a room, and I think you have at least 12 rooms available.”
Behind Mariana there were a row of access cards with room numbers on them, indicating that these cards had not yet been taken. Trapped, the receptionist thought it best to be honest with the man and explained the situation without losing her temper.
She said:
“Sir, please understand.”
“This is a luxury hotel that caters to the wealthy who usually arrive here by car or executive cab, not those who simply walk in.”
“It is not a place that everyone can afford.”
“We have a reputation in this city and we cannot put it at risk by giving one of our vacant rooms to someone who is not of the same social level as the rest of the guests.”
“You understand, right?”
The old man listened to everything with the same patience that the girl had shown, but his gaze seemed downcast and his face showed more disappointment with each sentence she uttered. He then said that Mariana was wrong and that all he wanted was a room in that hotel, because it had been a long time since he had rested.
It could be the simplest room with the worst view, it didn’t matter to him. But Mariana simply said that this was not how things worked.
The old man then asked to speak to management, but instead the hotel supervisor showed up. The supervisor’s name was Howard, and he introduced himself without extending his hand to the man.
Mariana quickly explained what was happening. At no time did Howard fail to look the man in the eye, and he maintained a rigid posture.
Howard agreed with the receptionist and told the old man that there was a three star hotel just a few blocks away, and that he should be able to get a room there. But the man refused to walk in the direction indicated by the supervisor.
Howard then called the security guard, who grabbed the old man and dragged him to the front door. When he was halfway there, Howard asked the security guard to stop.
The old man thought that at last these people had realized what a mistake they were making. But alas, this was not the case.
The supervisor told the security guard to take him out through the service entrance, because it would not look good if the other guests saw this scene right at the front desk of the hotel. The security guard was a huge man and he led the old man smoothly down a corridor to the back of the hotel.
The old man protested and said that everyone was making a huge mistake and that he wanted to talk to management, but the security guard only did what the supervisor told him to do.
When they got to the service area, they bumped into Vera, who was operating the hotel’s washing machines. When she saw the big security guard using excessive force against an old man, she told him to stop.
The security guard respected Vera, so he let the man go.
She asked:
“Why act like that?”
“And why is he coming out the back?”
“Is this how we treat people in this company now?”
