Inside Asian Gaming

inside asian gaming January 2015 24 Macallan Whisky and Cigar Bar, named for the premium Scotch whiskey brand, has a clean, elegant look and full drink service, featuring whiskey tasting menus. The separate cigar divan has a clubby feel, and offers Cuban as well as Philippine smokes. Cover Story The resort has added hundreds of gaming machines—including 223 linked to the Sky Tower opening—and about two dozen tables to its main gaming floor, bringing the overall mass table count to 384. most of what we needed. We had to have a pan-Asian marketing and execution effort. It’s the same here in the Philippines. Now I think that’s a very good thing because it allows us to be more diverse in terms of the origins of business.” Another similarity was the need to look past the short term for a “balanced, long-term sustainable business model,” the veteran hospitality executive says. “That means having a nice balance between table games and slot machines, having a nice balance between mass gaming and VIP gaming, and having a nice balance between international business and building a foundation from domestic business. So slots and tables, mass and VIP, international and domestic, that was required in Singapore and is an opportunity here and, actually, is a pretty virtuous circle here. If you can have synergy and strength in each of those areas, between tables and slots, between international and domestic, between VIP and mass, that’s a great way to build a profitable, valuable business.” Another common challenge was introducing the “new-fangled, much, much larger integrated resort” model to the Philippines. “It’s somewhat opening a new market,” Mr Arasi says. “Harkening back to lessons learned from Singapore and being sensitized how to approach that, and how to balance all of the factors that go into its success was very helpful.” STAGECRAFTING The Theater at Solaire spotlights the property’s move toward becoming a true IR. Built Broadway-style with a relatively narrow footprint, the 1,760-seat theater has a balcony and orchestra pit, plus a theater bar in its lobby. The backstage area opens directly to a loading dock, making it easier to move in large sets. Its Meyer Sound state of the art Constellation acoustic system is just the third installed in Asia, following installations in Macau and Singapore. Broadway musical “Chicago” inaugurated the theater with a three- week run from early December. The upcoming performance menu includes a mix of Philippine, regional and international shows, and Solaire has a full-time theater director to keep the stage lit. For MICE, Sky Tower adds The Forum, a 2,000 square meter flexible meeting space, divisible into separate rooms and linked to the resort’s main ballroom, the largest in Manila with a capacity of