24 August 2026
Domestic couple, driver, house manager: who a large home needs
While it is an apartment and one child, a nanny or a housekeeper settles the question. But a house with grounds, guests, several cars and a school timetable is a different load, and one person cannot carry it.
Below are the roles families often do not consider, simply because they do not know they exist.
A domestic couple
Two vetted people who take on the property as a whole: he handles the grounds, equipment and minor repairs; she handles the household, cleaning and cooking.
The main advantage is that they do not need to be sourced and settled in separately. They already work as a pair and live together, so the household gains one new couple rather than two new strangers.
It is particularly valuable if the house stands empty from time to time: there is someone to look after it.
A driver
School, work, the airport, trips between cities. A family driver is not about status — it is about time: several hours a day the family stops spending on roads and parking.
A good family driver is also discreet: they do not join conversations in the car and do not discuss the family’s movements with anyone.
A house manager
Once several people work in the house, somebody has to manage them — otherwise the lady of the house does it, and “help around the home” turns into a job.
A house manager takes on:
- Coordinating all household staff
- The household budget and reporting
- Contractors and service providers
- Preparing the home for events and moves
- Overseeing order and security
This is the key role once there are more than two or three staff.
Gardener and wardrobe manager
Two narrow roles that usually come last.
A gardener is needed where the grounds are more than a decorative lawn: seasonal pruning, planting, watering, preparing the garden for winter.
A wardrobe manager suits a large wardrobe with delicate fabrics: care, seasonal storage, dry cleaning and repairs, packing for trips.
How to build the team
The usual order is this:
- Close the most painful gap first — usually children or cleaning
- Then add what eats the parents’ time: a driver, a cook
- Once there are more than three people, a house manager appears
- Narrow roles (gardener, wardrobe manager) are added for a specific need
You do not have to build all of it at once, and usually you should not.
Where to start
Tell us how your household runs and what takes up the most time. We will advise who closes the gap and show the first profiles on the day you reach out.
All categories are on the staff placement page.