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You've been put in charge of a casino - now what?

Discussion in 'Misc. Vegas Chat' started by Bane, Apr 12, 2013.

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  1. Bane

    Bane Tourist

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    Pick a Vegas casino that you think needs changes.

    If you were put in charge of it what would you do?

    Try to be as realistic as you can be given the hypothetical. For instance you can't say you will offer a ton of low limit gambling and serve free top shelf liquor and give everyone RFB. That would never work.

    You are all Vegas pros and many have strong opinions on changes different casinos should make. So pick a casino and tell us what you would do if you were actually in the driver's seat.

    Think of it as one of the simulation games. In fact I think the old game Casino Empire had a scenario where they put you in charge of turning around a struggling casino.
     
  2. colpuck

    colpuck Tourist

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    Room rehabs at most of the CET properties would be where I would start.
     
  3. warpdrvr

    warpdrvr Low-Roller

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    Get rid of "resort fees"...this would apply to most anyplace lately, even some off strip places
     
  4. C0usineddie

    C0usineddie VIP Whale

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    If its on the strip I will make it a grind joint and cater to the blue collar joes and not the high rollers.

    These places are becoming less and less available especially on the strip so it should be pretty lucrative for me.

    Nicer the casino royale and circus circus.

    I would like to try it with Monte Carlo, ballys or TI. Weed out the snooty ones and bring in joe punchclock and bingo.
     
  5. Tammy58

    Tammy58 Frugal Slot Jockey

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    Oh Cousineddie....I will be your first customer. We only have Casino Royale left...This coming trip I am going to miss my O'Sheas and Bills. Can you put some reels in there please and a food court?
     
  6. C0usineddie

    C0usineddie VIP Whale

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    We have our first customer already!!
     
  7. MikeOPensacola

    MikeOPensacola El Jefe

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    1. Put a premium on customer service.
    2. 86 resort fees.
    3. 86 6/5 blackjack, first at the high limit tables, to generate buzz, and then at all tables.
    4. Put a premium on customer service with a zero tolerance policy to those employees whom are poor ambassadors to the property.:peace:
     
    Annual CCA (Casino Collectibles Association) Show at South Point
    Long Overdue Stay At The Golden Nugget
  8. Firehawk

    Firehawk Semi-Amateurish Gambler

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    Do ya need someone to look after fire protection??? I'd definitely be staying at your place.
     
  9. Funkhouser

    Funkhouser In Charge of the Big Door

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    Hmm, if this would be a semi-possible scenario, I think you have to look at properties that potentially could turn a buck as an independant joint.

    That being said there are only 1 joints on the strip with enough potential to make it as a decent independant joint with minimal spend.

    - Ballys

    Renovatate the south tower, and make it more contemporary style type rooms, like El Cortez cabana suites. This tower has premium views of strip and is under utilized. Keep North tower old school. Remodel some of the suites. I think around 130 million could put a decent facelift on the rooms.

    - Gut the downstairs shopping mall and put in some boutique style shops, niche mid tier products.

    - Upgrade pool facilitys, make pool adult only venue, add some outdoor events like cosmopolitian.

    - Gut the old buffet remodel and add more windows viewing area. Could be a really nice strip view. Second choice would be turn the place into an after hours lounge / club.

    - Rip out Ballys walkway and turn it into and outdoor events / entertainment area. Carnival court. Maybe add outdoor gaming area if could get NGC approval.

    - Finally if could raise up enough capital, build entertainment venue / theater that seats around 3,000 behind the joint ajacent to monorail. Book rotating headliners via CP model.

    - Lastly remodel the casino, move checkin over by south tower. Widen casino floor to where existing checkin areas are, get rid of the stairs on the casino floor that slow down the senior penny droppers.

    - Capitalize on a niche gaming theme, either have best BJ rules, or high paying slot percentage. Build out private high gaming area on top floor of south tower, limited access to certain suites.

    All told I am thinking would need at least 300 million.
     
  10. Royal Flusher

    Royal Flusher Savvy Gambler

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    Theme the ass out of Luxcalibur.
     
  11. leo21

    leo21 VIP Whale

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    I would take Harrah's and redo it. I would actually gut it and resize the rooms so they would be 100 sq ft larger. I would do this because the Harrah's hotels I've been to usually have significantly larger rooms and are more elegantly appointed. When you see the flagship property, it's a disappointing and nothing like what you come to expect. I would add soaking tubs to every room as well. It seems to me that Harrah's would benefit from more suites and specialty rooms. Overall this would make the whole hotel a more boutique property. The decor inspiration would come from the M suites.

    I would keep Carnival Court and the piano bar but I would give the whole casino an update so it's a bit more cohesive and contemporary. I would probably also amp up the Mardi Gras theme instead of slowly stripping it out. I love that there are so many slots and gaming positions and that won't change. VP and slot payback will improve. I think that looser slots draw more customers.

    I would give the cafe a more creole twist and give the servers a kick in the pants. It's too mediocre in there. As for the other restaurants, I would probably draw on the more successful concepts in the local casinos to revise them. Too many of them are just okay places but I think there are probably exisiting concepts the company already owns that would thrive in Vegas. And even eventually the steakhouse would revert to an original home-grown brand, maybe even calling it The Range again but this time, I would go completely Rat Pack up there. I would restore more early afternoon hours to the DL, especially when there are major sporting events. No buffet but more small bites for most of the day.

    I don't know if the pool is fixable. I would try but I think part of the complaint has to do with sun exposure and there is a limit to what can be done.

    Finally, I would do a better job promoting the shows there as in general the lineup is great. The only one that may not survive would be Defending the Caveman and if possible I would add something in the afternoon for the Improv space.

    Naturally resort fees would be gone. I think free wi-fi at least is reasonable. I would need to see some usage numbers on the gym before I made it free but it would cost much less if it weren't.

    Overall, my focus would be more Gen-X and Baby Boomer in the hopes that I would be casting a wider net. I see more than one casino on the strip that would probably be better off if they hadn't gone after the youth market because they did it on the cheap or they didn't go all in. I am after the customers they left behind. If Harrah's in Vegas were more like Harrah's in other parts of the country especially in the service department, I think people would see Harrah's differently.
     
  12. waverunner

    waverunner ------VEGA$------

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    Wow, that's basically what i would have said considering Bally's is my favorite location on the busiest corner in Vegas. I always stay in the South Tower. And putting money into the South Tower and make the rooms worthy of the great views.
     
  13. thecarve

    thecarve Misanthrope

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    I certainly wouldn't do away with the resort fees. I think it's fairly clear that no one else is going to do it. So I wouldn't want to leave any money on the table.

    I would, however, offer something of actual value for those who pay the fees. Say 10% (or whatever amount makes sense) off everything in the resort - restaurants, bars, spa, shows, table service, whatever (not the room, of course, I've already got your money for that:wink2:). Simply charge everything to your room and the discount will come off automatically.

    I figure this would accomplish a few things. It would make the fee easier to swallow for the customer. It would encourage people staying at the hotel to spend their money in the resort instead of spreading it all around town. And it would probably cause them to spend more since they would be charging to the room instead of paying with cash or their CC.

    Oh and I would turn the ****ing music down in the clubs at Encore! Or try to figure out how to better insulate the noise from the guest rooms. :grrr:
     
  14. smartone

    smartone VIP Whale

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    I'd work on motivating and incentivizing the employees... once you do that, everything else gets a whole lot easier, cause you have so much help!
     
  15. Molder66

    Molder66 Low-Roller

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    I would re theme to cover the history of Vegas, kind of like the Mob Museum.

    Of course I would reinstate the skim, just for my enjoyment. :evillaugh
     
  16. LolaDoggie

    LolaDoggie VIP Whale

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    I would end up in jail, rehab or dead. But, it would be a really awesome few months.
     
  17. Reston

    Reston VIP Whale

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    I'd open up the Mob Casino & Hotel. Hire a Bugsy Siegal type to run it along with real pit bosses with authority to take care of gamblers. Lots of table games. Have to be 21 to enter the property/stay at the hotel. No f**king player cards, no f**king buffets. Oh, if you screw with us, expect a one-way ride out to the desert.
     
  18. DReynolds86

    DReynolds86 Let's Go Pens!

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    Yeah, you let me know how that goes.
     
  19. KellyLovesVegas

    KellyLovesVegas Earthling/retired space nerd

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    Would that also include removal of the ass-crack smell from Excalibur :wink2:
     
  20. topcard

    topcard Here's to $10 3:2 two-deck, $5 Craps, and $5 UTH!

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    Simple. I would re-create the Stardust, circa 1990....the casino lay-out, the blackjack tables & rules, the check-in desk, the VIP check-in, Toucan Harry's along with it's separate 'comp' line, the Tony Roma's (back when it was good), the sports book of course, & gorgeous Keno girls in every restaurant, 24/7.
    ~sigh~
     
    Annual Spring Trip!
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