Pre-Meal for Feb 19, 2025A Special Welcome

Happy Wednesday!

My dad and I are extremely close, and I know we’re lucky to have the relationship we do, which is why I make it a practice to call him any time I’m waiting to board a flight. Since I travel so much, I get to talk to him a lot.

I was on the phone with him recently while boarding a Finnair flight to Helsinki. After I was seated, the flight attendant offered me champagne in a particularly beautiful glass, and one that felt very familiar.

“Hey, I think they just served me champagne in an Iittala glass,” I told my dad. “Isn’t that wild? These cost a fortune.” Iittala is a Finnish design company whose glasses are in the permanent collection at the Museum of Modern Art. My parents also happened to have a precious set of them when I was growing up.

“No way,” he said. “It’s gotta be a knockoff.”

After takeoff, though, the steward confirmed that the stunning glass in my hand was, in fact, made by the iconic brand. “Welcome to Finland,” he said with pride.

Readers of Unreasonable Hospitality will remember The Rule of 95/5 — the idea that you manage 95 percent of your budget with an eagle eye so you can spend that last 5 percent “foolishly” — really, on a splurge that will have a huge impact on your customer.

That glass is a beautiful example of 95/5 — 10x more expensive than an ordinary flute and worth it. I don’t remember much about that flight — anything else I ate or drank, what I watched, or what I worked on — but I do know that everything that came after felt a little more luxurious, a little more special, because that glass was the first thing in my hand.

Save your pennies so you can spend “foolishly” once in a while. Your guests will notice.

Have a good service,

Will