LONDON VAUXHALL DEALERS

London is facing an unprecedented surge in the number of companies offering concierge and other special services to the very wealthy, as new groups of rich emigrés relocate to the UK to escape instability abroad.

Russians have been joined by Indians and continental Europeans among the overseas buyers that have purchased 60% of the prime property available in central London in the past few years, according to estate agents. The growth in foreign purchases appears to be matched by the growth in companies that are willing to do anything for their clients – any time, any place, anywhere.

Alistair Gill, the manager of Mayfair Concierge, which started business last month, said companies such as his were there to open doors, simplify procedures and obtain the unobtainable for those who could afford it. "While times are tough, there are still a lot of people who enjoy a high quality of life – who are cash-rich and time-poor. It's a growth market," he said.

Clients typically pay a retainer of around £5,000 a month, for which they expect 24-hour service but still must meet all other costs. Neither the price of the services nor the economic climate has had much effect on demand. Andreas Ash, marketing director of Greek Concierge Group, which has been in business for three years, said his company was working at capacity with a waiting list of 350 people. "We won't be able to accept most of them. It's all about service, and if we take too many members we'll degrade our service," he said.

Russian, Indian and French buyers have accounted for almost one third of recent central London house purchases, but there has also been an increase in Greek and Italian arrivals, a spokeswoman for estate agent Knight Frank said. The French are escaping a tax regime in which the wealthy are likely to be required to pay more under the new presidency of François Hollande; the Russians are investing in an insurance policy against possible persecution from an authoritarian leader, Vladimir Putin; and other Europeans are moving their money out of the unstable eurozone.

What they share is a desire for certain aspects of British life – private education, hunting and fishing – as well as everything they might expect from a playboy's paradise, such as reservations at restaurants and nightclubs, and sometimes even drugs and prostitutes. But going to the right shoot, ensuring your child jumps the school waiting list or getting a seat at a restaurant that is fully booked for the next year require skills and contacts beyond most of us.

Gill describes the typical concierge as someone who has worked in five or six-star hotels, "someone who loves people and is well balanced, understands what people want and is unshockable".

People in the industry are happy to talk about extravagant requests but less comfortable talking about personal services such as prostitution and drugs, which they are often asked to accommodate. According to Ash: "We have been asked for some things like escorts. We always do our best, but if it's not a healthy business situation we have to say that is as far as we go."

Even some of the legal requests are as demanding as they are unusual. One company recounts how it was requested to organise a two-hour shopping spree with an unlimited budget for a client and her two friends in the style of the film Pretty Woman. "With no prior warning, and without being allowed to explain the challenge, we had to get the co-operation of managers and numerous assistants at more than a dozen stores, including Louis Vuitton, Christian Dior, Hermès, Chanel and Yves St Laurent. Two hours later, what had started as a stroll for four friends had become a convoy of cars and vans carrying £250,000 of shoes, clothes and accessories," the website recounts.

The same site describes how the company received a call from a client at 10.40pm, saying he wanted to get engaged at breakfast the next morning. "We sourced $20m of diamond jewellery overnight in time for him to propose when his girlfriend awoke," according to the site. On many occasions, the company has been commissioned to make clients' wives burst into tears of happiness.

Some of the companies employ linguists to ensure London feels just like home. Ten Lifestyle Concierge has teams of Russian and Chinese speakers to deal with the growing number of clients.

Bryn Dyer, a director of Ten, said: "Typically our London-based Russian members will use us to get set up here. They also ask us for tutoring services, help getting their children into private schools, finding exclusive retail items, booking high-end restaurants and finding theatre tickets. Our London-based Chinese members are similar in tastes, but tend to be younger students. They tend to use us to book high-end restaurants, hotels and taxis."

All the companies say they expect their business to expand over the coming years and many are opening branches all over the world and recruiting staff. Bryn Dyer said: "The demand for our services is most definitely increasing. Not just in London but globally, as the wealthy elite are increasingly mobile."

Kaufusi rumbled over as the hooter sounded at the Stoop and Powell said: “That is the type of win that galvanises you as a group — and I really hope this builds the chemistry of the squad.

“For us to get two late scores shows our resolve and it is great to have something positive rather than negative to focus on.”

Kaufusi bailed out a London side who looked on course for an eighth straight defeat after try doubles from Widnes’ Cameron Phelps and Frank Winterstein.

Phelps touched down after three minutes, with Winterstein levelling things up at the break after home scores from Aussie Craig Gower and Omari Caro.

The Widnes pair struck again after the interval, but London scores from Tony Clubb and Dan Sarginson kept it close before prop Kaufusi’s late show.

Denis Betts, who saw Broncos move above his Vikings in the table, said: “We have to be philosophical about it.

“We won a game in the last minute last week and lost one in the last minute here.

“It would have been great to push ourselves away from the foot of the table but it was not to be.”