Dec. 08–Q: Revel recently announced it is pursuing strategic alternatives, leading to speculation that the property is headed for another bankruptcy or a sale. What can you tell us about what’s being considered and why?
A: It’s not speculation. It’s a reality. There’s a whole broad spectrum of opportunity. When we look at how quickly can we make Revel competitive in the marketplace … we would be remiss if we didn’t look for opportunities to potentially partner with folks, to do affiliation marketing programs with other casino companies, (the) potential of a joint venture partnership, (the) potential of a sale of the asset — any number of things that we’re exploring right now. We’re being very open and broad in our approach toward soliciting interest. But the intent of the strategic process is to continue to push Revel toward performing at the level that it rightfully should within the marketplace.
Q: Any timeline for seeing these changes?
A: No, not a timeline at this point. We’re actively speaking with folks … and soliciting interest. It really depends on how many people show interest and what type of interest they have in the property. Once we know that, we can set more of a timeline in place. But definitely within the next year.
Q: You’re coming in as the leader of a property that’s faced significant challenges. Why did you want to get involved in Revel? Where do you see potential in this property?
A: I wanted to get involved because I think I can make a difference. … I’m an entrepreneurial person. I love to be able to approach complicated projects and problems and solve them. At the same time, it’s not necessarily the most complicated situation. The reality is that Revel just needs to be run like a casino. We need to provide products and service and amenities that gamblers and leisure customers as well are interested in.
I think the other thing that’s important is Revel isn’t detached from the situation of Atlantic City. Revel is a big, big piece of the Atlantic City equation. … Some people might say the last thing in the world Atlantic City needs is another casino. I tend to differ. I think that the first thing that Atlantic City needs is another casino — a casino of quality such as Revel, a casino that’s a category killer, a casino that is built for the future of Atlantic City. I think that Revel’s success is going to be integral to the success of Atlantic City going forward.
(If) you take a look at Atlantic City five years from now or 10 years from now: What does that landscape look like as more and more states approve more and more gaming operations and we move in the region toward convenience gaming? The only thing that trumps convenience gaming is a unique experience. Atlantic City needs to continue to reinvent itself and provide those unique experiences. The wonderful thing about Atlantic City is the history, the natural resource of the coastline and these types of things. At the same time, having products in the city that can compete with all of the new casinos coming online (is) very important for Atlantic City.
Q: Revel’s strategy has changed considerably since it’s opening, first marketing itself as a luxury resort, then switching modes to attract gamblers and act as an affordable casino. Do you think the latter strategy will stick? Where do you see Revel fitting into the market in the long term?
A: I think the latter strategy absolutely will stick, and it is sticking. We’re seeing great improvement in the performance of the property. The opening of the property was definitely slated toward a singular niche in the marketplace.
A lot of businesses in the world will tell you that you can’t be everything to everyone and you have to have a niche. In my opinion, in the casino business, specifically in a resort with all of the amenities that this has, you have to cater to everyone, whether that’s a 21-year-old customer or a 75-year-old customer.
One of the things that we worked really hard on is providing value food offerings. … When you (looked) at the clientele that would rather just get a simple American breakfast or a cheeseburger for lunch or $9.99 steak and shrimp special, we were lacking in that area. … In our cafe right now, the volumes and the feedback from our customers is just phenomenal.
We just opened up a new players’ lounge to be competitive in the marketplace. It’s called the Premiere Lounge. … The other thing we’ve done is we’ve added a lot more midweek offerings. We’ve put in a seniors program, so a 50-plus program to offer things midweek for senior citizens to do. … We’re doing a lot more broad-based promotions.
I can’t market my way out of the situation. A lot of times that’s the easy thing to do. The easy thing to do is just do a big giveaway or do a big monthly drawing and solve the problem. Well, the underlying issue is: Are you executing on the service and the quality of the product?
Q: Are you seeing difficulty in getting people to take a second look at Revel after they had already gotten an impression of the property early on?
A: I’m finding that a lot of people came once in the past at some point. (They) did not find either the service or the quality of product or the type of product that they wanted, and went back to their property that they were at before. For me, I’m doing things like talking to you today to ask people to come back (and) give us another chance. We’ve changed. We’ve improved. I think people who have tried us in the past and come back to give us another shot will be very pleased with the improvements we’ve made.
Q: You’ve had a long career in Las Vegas before coming here, and you’ve worked under industry giants such as Steve Wynn. What have you learned from those situations that you can apply to Atlantic City?
A: I learned that the casino business is really simple when you put a microscope to it and dissect the fundamentals of the business. One thing I’ve learned working for people like Steve Wynn and Frank Fertitta is that you have to execute on the fundamentals. … You cannot market your way to success in the business.
The other thing I know is you cannot be successful without having all of your team members on board, happy to be part of the project, happy to work at the property.
Thirdly, the idea that … you can be everything to everyone as long as you know what certain groups of people care for. You can create a successful operation such as Revel by catering to the needs of different groups of people.
Q: You talked about the affordable dining changes that you’re adding. Do you have any plans for entertainment changes?
A: We’ve actually made a lot of entertainment changes. In the beginning, the strategy for entertainment was more brand-oriented. We had large acts like Beyonce and others, which helped to kind of create a brand recognition for what Revel was about. In keeping with what I have just said about having a broader selection of offerings for our customers, we’ve changed our approach to where we’re booking a lot more acts over a broader range of genres and price points. We’re looking at our entertainment on a cash basis. So we’re looking to book entertainment that can break even through ticket sales.
Ovation Hall is, in my opinion, one of the best concert venues on the East Coast. To not figure out how to use that asset to our advantage and create competitive advantage there would be a miss for us. … I think you’ll see the variety and quantity of entertainment in 2014 will be three-fold what it’s been in the past for Revel.
Q: This summer Revel began the You Can’t Lose campaign as a strategy to attract gamblers, but that also spurred some lawsuits from people who claimed it was misleading. Do you think the promotion was a mistake?
A: I can’t speak specifically because there is a lawsuit in place about it. I think that what Revel was doing when it launched the Gamblers Wanted campaign in totality was to let people know that Revel was not just a luxury resort. … We really wanted to go out in the summer and let people know that it’s a great place to play slot machines or play blackjack, as well as just recreate from a resort standpoint. I do think that the Gamblers Wanted program was successful. I don’t think that over time it’s the overall brand strategy for the property. … Something more toward the center that speaks to all different types of folks that would like to come to Revel is something that we’ll move into from a brand strategy going forward.
Q: Where do you think Revel’s greatest mistakes have been, and what’s your long-term growth strategy?
A: I don’t like to focus on mistakes. There’s a lot of that going on. I think Revel still has this cloud attached to it. Everybody likes to look at it through the prism of it going bankrupt in its first year and these types of things. I’m really trying hard to create a fresh start. Looking back into the past into what Revel was is not going to do us any good other than to learn from some of the mistakes.
Revel into the future will find its place and its rightful place in the Atlantic City market, and quite frankly, the East Coast as a competitive gaming facility. I think Revel is a huge part of the future growth … of Atlantic City. As far as strategy goes, my strategy is to make Revel a viable operation financially first and foremost. Secondly, I think that once we accomplish that — and we will — I think its important for me as an executive of the property to be involved in Atlantic City itself, whether that’s through the (Atlantic City Alliance) or the (Casino Reinvestment Development Authority) or other board and organizations. I can help Atlantic City grow, Atlantic City stay competitive, Atlantic City reinvent itself.
Q: Internet gambling debuted last month in New Jersey, but Revel hasn’t announced any plans to be involved. Are there plans for the future? Why not get started with the first group?
A: There’s definitely plans for the future. There’s no question that at some point Revel will be involved in Internet gaming. As it relates to the strategic process, we made a decision that we would encompass our online gaming opportunity into that strategic process, versus be a first mover into that space. We kind of took the approach that would be part and parcel of what we do in the future related to the strategic process.
Q: There’s been dispute over whether Internet gambling will cannibalize the brick-and-mortar market. What do you see as the impact of Internet gambling as well as the possibility of sports betting in New Jersey’s future?
A: It’s kind of a head-in-the-sand mentality to naysay online gaming. The world is headed in that direction. Can I forecast what the end result of that will be? No. But I can tell you that sticking your head in the sand and being fearful of it is not a good strategy. Embracing it, trying to set the strategic direction of it and actually moving forward is the right strategy. Will there be positive and negative effects of all this? Sure there will be. In any change of a business model in any industry, you have to continue to innovate.
As far as online sports wagering, I’m a big fan. Coming from Las Vegas, I actually personally in my role with Station Casinos built our only mobile sports wagering app that was built by an operator. … I can tell you as a person that had the ability to bet on the (Denver) Broncos on Sunday morning, it was a lot of fun and very convenient. When you talk about catering to people’s needs as an industry, if we don’t continue to do that, evolve, other forms of entertainment will do that.
For New Jersey, it would be a very beneficial thing to get sports wagering approved in the state.
Q: Atlantic City is in the midst of a state plan for revitalization. What are your impressions of Atlantic City and the progress that’s been made so far in the Tourism District?
A: Atlantic City is a wonderful place. It really is. … I do think Atlantic City has some work to do, and everybody recognizes that. Having some leadership at the government level politically, at the community level and within the casino industry itself … we need to take some risks here and do some things that (have impact) because time is of the essence as gaming continues to proliferate around us. Making Atlantic City a unique destination is important for its future success.
Whether that’s improving the air carriers coming into the airport so that we get better convention and meeting business — absolutely critical. But there’s also some cleanup that needs to be done, which everybody recognizes. There’s an effort underway through a number of organizations to try to clean up Atlantic City. There’s been progress there, and there’s a lot more to do.
There’s a time to talk and strategize, and then there’s a time to actually roll your sleeves up (and) get some stuff done.
Contact Jennifer Bogdan:
609-272-7239
JBogdan@pressofac.com
@ACPressJennifer on Twitter
