Senior Hall Porter, Ronnie MacDonald, remembers those days well. “It was a different era and although many aspects of the Gleneagles experience haven’t changed, there are some parts you’d hardly recognise today!” he laughs.
Ronnie arrived for his very first shift as a porter on Monday 28 June 1983. “The first task my manager asked me to do that morning was to clean the toilets,” he says. “There was no onboarding or settling in period in those days so it was a baptism of fire. I showed up on time, did what I was told and asked no questions.”
As a shy 17-year-old boy who had grown up in a quiet village in Perthshire, Ronnie found that first day overwhelming and daunting. “The hotel was so big and grand and the pace of the operation was really fast,” he says, “but Gleneagles taught me to come out of my shell pretty quickly.
“It really inspired me. For the first time in my life, I was meeting people of all different backgrounds and from all over the world – there’s nothing better for developing confidence than meeting people. After overcoming my initial lack of confidence, I discovered I was actually a real people person and I found myself doing what I loved every day and being paid for it too! My first pay check was around £100 per week, which was a huge amount of money back then.
“I still love my job all these years later and I think part of that’s because over the last four decades, no two days have ever been the same.”
For Ronnie, the past 40 years have gone by in a flash and he finds it hard to pick a favourite moment. “There have been so many highlights,” he says. “I’ve met personal heroes and some of the highest profile people in the world – footballers, golfers, royalty and Hollywood stars – but my mantra is to treat every guest who walks through the doors as a VIP.”
He recounts the day he met a guest who told him he was a coal miner and had spent his life saving up to stay at Gleneagles. For Ronnie, meeting the gentleman was just as special as the numerous times he’d met A-list movie stars.
What struck Ronnie most after the encounter was that, “no matter who you are, a coal miner or a president, Gleneagles is a magical place for all our guests. I’m proud to play my small part in ensuring that’s the case.”
On why he’s stayed for 40 years, Ronnie finds hard to put into words. “It’s so difficult to explain to anyone who hasn’t worked here, but Gleneagles has something that other hotels don’t. There’s a kind of magic here and once you’re under its spell, you don’t want to leave. I couldn’t imagine working anywhere else.”
