Inside Asian Gaming

inside asian gaming June 2014 10 it throughout Southeast Asia. Tourism is on the up and up. They’ve got challenges. The airport’s not a great experience, the roads aren’t great. But they’re working on those things. So by the time we open I think we’ll be well-positioned. The Philippines in terms of a true destination has a reputation for having beautiful beaches and friendly people. Probably not for great cuisine or fantastic entertainment shows or top-end hotels. But that’s all going to change. I think that as that changes everyone’s perception of the Philippines as a destination also is going to change. Greatly for the positive. And the Philippines government is behind this. The chairman, certainly part of his mission is to really put the Philippines on the map, bringing it up to the likes of Singapore and Macau. So I’m very positive on the outlook here. For you at this point, five months in, what’s it been like? I was working on an action plan probably for four or five months before I even started in terms of what are the key areas I needed to focus on, key people we needed to put in place, what’s our strategy going to be in the market, learn more about the property, all those kinds of things. So I think I hit the ground running in that regard. Obviously sitting down with you is one of those areas. Because we have a pretty bad image out there. We need more positive news. There are plenty of positive things about the project and about the chairman and his investments in the Philippines that people don’t even know about. He’s got a factory here for his Aruze company. There are game designers as well. He’s got a commitment to the Philippines regardless of the casino. He’s not just here to run a casino. He’s been employing hundreds of people for several years now. There have been a couple of speed bumps for the project along with the way. We’ve just won the case with [former development partner] Century Properties. That’s some really good news. There’s Reuters going off in their own direction, doing some crazy reporting that no one else is going to pick up because it’s a lunatic story. So there are those things that are happening as well, which you’ve got to kind of put aside to keep focused on the job. But I’ve really enjoyed it. I certainly don’t feel that I’ve got all the answers or I know exactly the next step and the next step and the next step. So I talk to people who have been mentors for me through my career. And I’ve found it really refreshing, actually, to work in a Japanese company. It’s very different. You certainly need to work on communications protocol, really build relationships with everyone, as you would generally. But I’ve found it very interesting. You know, Japan’s looking at opening up their industry. So I think it’s a good place to be. I also have a great team helping me, with a wealth of knowledge and experience, and a deep passion about the project, so I’m very lucky in that regard. “[Mr Okada] got a Michelin star in his first year at KO Dining in Hong Kong, so he knows food and beverage. We’re focused on that for the Asian customer. I don’t think it’s been done very well so far in Manila. We’re going to work and focus very hard on that.” “There’s no reason to go anywhere else but our resort. We’ll have a full entertainment offering, a wide array of food and beverage offerings. We’re going to have a fantastic spa facility. Retail, when Phase 2 opens, it’s going to be over 70,000 square meters. So we think we’ve got everything that people will need.” Cover Story