MACAU BUSINESS
“the opportunity to capture people who are currently day-trippers, who cannot find accommodations that are of high quality and affordable prices”. “We are starting to pick up an increased level of
business, in particular across that four-star hotel product,” says Kevin Clayton, executive vice-president of marketing operations for Venetian Macau Ltd, a Sands China subsidiary. He says the addition of 5,800 hotel rooms to the company’s portfolio will allow it to solve one major problem – lack of enough accommodation to meet demand. Unlike at Sands Macao and the Venetian, the gaming operator decided not to use familiar “Sands” brands for the hotels at Cotai Central. It opted instead to partner with hospitality companies with a considerable footprint in the mainland. “It makes sense to have that diversity, with brand
names that resonate with a lot of our customers,” says Mr Clayton.
Shuffling tables
Once complete, Cotai Central will house two themed casinos called Himalaya and Pacifica. Himalaya opens in phase one and has about 600
slots, 216 gaming tables and four live electronic gaming tables connected to 200 terminals for players. Another 150 VIP tables can be found at the Paiza,
Cotai Central’s dedicated area for VIP premium and junket players. The Paiza will host 11 fixed junkets. The gaming operator will get 200 new tables from
the government for the first phase. That will use up all the available tables under the cap of 5,500
28 MAY 2012
imposed until next year. The property’s other tables will be sourced from Sands’ established casinos. “Those are tables for which we don’t really have a
strong use and that we have been holding in anticipation of opening Cotai Central,” says Sands China executive vice-president and chief operating officer David Sisk. It could be far more difficult finding tables for
Pacifica when it opens in the third quarter. “Our understanding is that we have another 200 new tables that we were essentially promised [by the government],” Mr Sisk says. Sands China wants to ensure Cotai Central and its
sister properties across the street are tightly connected. A pedestrian flyover connecting to the Four Seasons will open in the first quarter of next 2013. “What we are creating in Cotai is the world’s first
integrated resort city,” says Mr Tracy. “Interconnectivity will be a big part of our future.” Connectivity will play a big part in the future of all the gaming concessionaires in Cotai. “The convenience of the customer long term is something we all will have to work together as operators,” Mr Tracy says.
Sands China has also created a master identity for
its three shopping malls in Cotai: The Grand Canal Shoppes at the Venetian, The Shoppes at Four Seasons and Shoppes Cotai Central. Together they will boast 600 shops and will be promoted under the umbrella brand Shoppes Cotai. The 28 shops that rcently opened at Cotai Central include first-to-market brands Michael Kors, Sergio
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