London is where Oplu started, in 2018, and it remains the market where we run the most searches. The city holds the largest concentration of single family offices in Europe, a deep pool of private office professionals, and a household staffing market that has been professional for a century. It is also the market where expectations are highest and where a wrong hire is most visible, because everyone knows everyone.

Roles we place in London

The work falls into three groups, and most clients hire across at least two of them over time.

The private office. Chief of Staff, Executive Assistant, Personal Assistant and Family Office Assistant are the seats we fill most often in London. Behind them sit the operating roles: Family Office Director, Director of Operations and CFO or Finance Director. Investment seats, from Chief Investment Officer to Analyst, are usually London-based even when the family is not.

The household. London residences run on a House Manager or, where there are several properties, an Estate Manager. Below them: Housekeeper, Executive Head Housekeeper, Butler, Private Chef, Private PA and the childcare team, from Governess or Tutor to rota and travelling nannies.

Luxury and hospitality. Members' clubs, boutique hotels and luxury houses headquartered in London hire General Managers, Operations leaders and Food and Beverage Directors through us, often because they want someone who understands private service as well as commercial hospitality.

How Oplu works in London

Most London searches are confidential. The principal's name is not disclosed until shortlist, the role is rarely advertised, and candidates are approached directly. That is possible in London because the market is dense enough to map: we know which offices are hiring, which are restructuring and which assistants are quietly looking.

Searches are led by a Managing Director. Fırat Bay leads family office and investment mandates; Antonia Edwards leads household, estate and hospitality mandates. Both meet the principal or the decision-maker before the search opens, because in London the brief is rarely what the job description says. A "PA" in Mayfair may in practice be a Chief of Staff with a different title and salary expectations to match.

Interviews in London tend to be in person and tend to involve the principal earlier than in other markets. We prepare candidates for that and we schedule around a principal's travel rather than the other way round.

Compensation in London

London salaries for private office and household roles have risen faster than general wages since 2021, and they vary by postcode, by travel expectation and by whether the role is live-in. Ranges for every role we place are published in the Family Office Salary Guide and the Private Staff Salary Guide. We benchmark each brief against live searches before advising a figure.

Employment notes for London

Household and office roles in the UK commonly involve employee status. Employers must confirm the correct status, provide the required written terms, run PAYE where required and enrol eligible staff in a workplace pension. Right to work checks remain the employer's responsibility, alongside the checks we run before shortlist. Live-in roles need a clear accommodation agreement and working time arrangements; the National Minimum Wage accommodation offset is small and rarely relevant at this level. Notice periods of one to three months are normal for senior roles, so start dates are usually six to twelve weeks from offer. Where a family's affairs are run through a company, we advise on whether staff should be employed by the household or the entity, because it affects liability, confidentiality clauses and future flexibility.

Working with Oplu in London

The first conversation is with a Managing Director, at our office at 12 Hay Hill or at a residence, and it is confidential. We scope the role, the reporting line and the compensation before anything is written down.

Questions we are asked about hiring in London

How long does a London search take? Four to eight weeks from brief to offer for assistant and household roles, eight to twelve for Chief of Staff, Family Office Director and investment seats. Notice periods add another one to three months.

Can the search stay confidential from our existing staff? Yes. Most London searches run without the current team knowing, and we interview away from the residence or office when needed. We name the principal only at shortlist, and only to candidates who have signed a confidentiality undertaking.

Do you recruit live-in staff in London? Yes, though live-in roles are a smaller share of London briefs each year as staff prefer to live out. Where the role is live-in we settle the accommodation terms before the search opens, because they decide who will apply.

Do you work outside London? Yes. The Home Counties, the Cotswolds and country estates across England and Scotland are part of the London practice, and staff for a house in Oxfordshire are usually sourced from the same pool as London.

We already have a candidate in mind. Can you assess them? Yes. We run the same referencing, interviews and benchmarking on an introduced candidate as on our own shortlist, and we tell you plainly whether to hire them.