INSIGHT - GROSVENOR CASINOS Pier Nine
Grosvenor transforms iconic Brighton landmark
Grosvenor Casinos has transformed the former Art Deco cinema on Grand Junction Road into a 24/7 entertainment hub
Work on Pier Nine completed in December with the official launch set for February 1, 2020. Te 24-hour hour party will be jam-packed with live acts and entertainment, including a headline DJ set by Greg James from BBC Radio 1, perfectly aimed at Pier Nine’s target audience. Te project has created 60 jobs with a mixture of full time and part time roles.
G3 interviewed Amy Culora, Head of London and Investments Marketing at Te Rank Group, about the new location and specifically, how it’s different from anything that’s come before.
Many casino brands have talked about engaging a millennial minded audience for some time, but not executed in practice. Why now and why in Brighton?
When we talk about millennial-minded audiences, this really means an attitude rather than an age bracket. Consumer demands today are very different from what they were even five years ago, and the broader leisure market has responded to this with a variety of new format experiences based on re-imagined games. Te trend hasn’t been about developing concepts from scratch, but almost celebrating retro style leisure activities such as ping pong, darts, bowling and shuffleboards.
We’ve attempted to adapt our casino business model over the past 10-15 years with the introduction of the G Casino brand and more leisure focused casinos, and we’re proud of the work that we’ve done in this area to date. However, the approach with our venues to date has been around how we adapt our casino offer to attract new audiences rather than how we adapt our venues to appeal to different audiences in different ways - so that’s the approach we’re taking here.
Te Brighton venue was due a refurbishment and we had the opportunity to expand the footprint by taking on an adjoining building. With the forward-thinking attitude which is displayed by the Brighton consumer it seemed like the perfect fit to trial something new.
Te venue, known as Pier Nine, renovates the existing Grosvenor Casino Brighton into a vibrant leisure, entertainment and gaming destination located on the city’s sea front.
Construction began in August 2019 on the £5.2 million venue, which is set over three floors. Pier Nine has been designed for modern work, rest and play and includes space to work and meet with friends and colleagues, stylish bars, modern eateries, two classic casinos, a variety of fun and competitive socialising games, as well as a private cinema and karaoke space to hire.
Bob Bowry, General Manager of Grosvenor Casino Brighton said: “We’re excited to share our vision for Pier Nine with the Brighton community and our existing customers, which brings a unique social experience to
P76 NEWSWIRE / INTERACTIVE / MARKET DATA the city’s vibrant cultural scene.
“Tis is a major investment in a well-loved building on the sea front, creating new jobs in the local leisure and entertainment sector as well as a destination for the changing habits of those in search of memorable experiences under one roof.
“Pier Nine is a 24/7 venue for work, rest and play and is open to everyone who enjoys a vibrant atmosphere without the need for membership fees. Te variety of fantastic food and drink on offer, as well as retro gaming and the excitement of traditional casino games makes Pier Nine a leisure and entertainment destination for all to enjoy.”
Grosvenor Casino Brighton remained operational throughout the refurbishment.
Could you describe the initial concept/vision of creating Pier Nine and how this has progressed through to delivery?
Te original brief was around how we make our business more appealing to wider audiences around a 24-hour proposition. We were challenged to think about how we present our venues in a more modern way to ensure we optimise the experience for all groups of customers, whether experienced gamblers or new leisure customers.
We looked at the overarching proposition from a customer experience perspective and broke it down into a number of elements. Tis required us to look at the challenge through different lenses, whether that was the various customer groups, the day of week and primary reason to visit. Once we had a clear framework, we were able to identify the ingredients which would appeal to these audiences at the various times.
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100 |
Page 101 |
Page 102 |
Page 103 |
Page 104 |
Page 105 |
Page 106 |
Page 107 |
Page 108 |
Page 109 |
Page 110 |
Page 111 |
Page 112 |
Page 113 |
Page 114 |
Page 115 |
Page 116 |
Page 117 |
Page 118 |
Page 119 |
Page 120 |
Page 121 |
Page 122 |
Page 123 |
Page 124 |
Page 125 |
Page 126 |
Page 127 |
Page 128 |
Page 129 |
Page 130 |
Page 131 |
Page 132 |
Page 133 |
Page 134 |
Page 135 |
Page 136 |
Page 137 |
Page 138 |
Page 139 |
Page 140 |
Page 141 |
Page 142 |
Page 143 |
Page 144 |
Page 145 |
Page 146 |
Page 147 |
Page 148 |
Page 149 |
Page 150 |
Page 151 |
Page 152 |
Page 153 |
Page 154 |
Page 155 |
Page 156 |
Page 157 |
Page 158 |
Page 159 |
Page 160 |
Page 161 |
Page 162 |
Page 163 |
Page 164 |
Page 165 |
Page 166 |
Page 167 |
Page 168 |
Page 169 |
Page 170
