TALKING POINTS with Harrah's Don Marrandino
by Lloyd Levenson
April 29, 2010
Harrah's Entertainment's Eastern Division President Don Marrandino
Don Marrandino is Eastern Division president for Las
Vegas-based Harrah’s Entertainment, responsible for the company’s four
Atlantic
City casino hotels — Harrah’s, Showboat, Bally’s and Caesars — and
Harrah’s
Chester in southeastern Pennsylvania. Since returning to his home town
last
year he has taken on his new responsibilities with his trademark energy
and
gusto, as he outlines here in a wide-ranging discussion with well-known
gaming
attorney and Casino Journal columnist Lloyd D.
Levenson.
Tell us a little bit about your background. All of a
sudden you appear in Atlantic City.
Marrandino:
I was born in Atlantic City. I started working as a
$5-an-hour front desk clerk, worked my way up in the Hotel Division at Bally’s
and helped open Trump Plaza, where I was front office manager. I ended up going
to Las Vegas in 1988, culminating in a move to Harrah’s in 2003. Then [Harrah’s
Chairman and CEO] Gary Loveman asked that I come back to where I was born.
What
was your initial reaction to the move from Las Vegas to Atlantic
City?
Marrandino:
Even though I thought I had the best life in the world in Las Vegas I came here
because I thought there was an opportunity to be part of something that could
be great. I know the competition is tough, and the economic times are not good,
but I wanted to be really aggressive to try to re-brand these properties. I
never met an event or a show I didn’t like in the casino, and I would put our
current entertainment schedule up against anybody’s.
Did
you take a look and say, “There’s room for improvement”?
Marrandino:
Yes. There were only 10 or 11 really good shows last
year at Caesars. This year we’re going to triple that. We are looking for more
entertainment concepts and are willing to take a big chance with our new summer
show at Harrah’s.
You’re
going to feature a show that will run the whole summer?
Marrandino:
Yes. I think it will
be a sensation. We took a chance with Donny and Marie in Las Vegas, but it
turned out to be the city’s biggest show. Donny and Marie have been contacted
about coming here in the summer. In addition, we hope to have a concert on the
beach on July Fourth, and we expect 3,000 to 5,000 people.
Speaking
of branding, in a relatively short period of time, Atlantic City’s casinos have
become a mecca for big-name restaurants. How important is this to the future of
Atlantic City?
Marrandino:
That’s one area where Atlantic City was behind but
is now really catching up. Brands really work well here, and we have to
continue to do that. The restaurants at Borgata are amazing with their
celebrity chefs. … In another area, we are going to make more aggressive use of
Boardwalk Hall this summer. People say, “Do more,” and that’s just what we’re
going to do. We need to appreciate the economic impact of a concertgoer. I’m a
big music fan, and when I go to see a show it’s not just the show, but it’s
eating out at a nice restaurant, going to the closest good bar, and having a
good room available.
This
brings up your belief that making the city a better place to visit helps
everybody.
Marrandino:
I definitely think so.
I don’t know why everybody would not say, “Let’s all get in this and make sure
this town is busy, because the busier it is the more money everybody makes.” I
think the biggest economic stimulus package this city could have would be to
get everyone working together.
There has been talk in town that when the Revel project
opens it will put a few other casinos out of business. What’s your opinion of
Revel, especially since you run a casino [Showboat Atlantic City] right next to
it?
Marrandino:
Having been in Las Vegas for the whole boom and
having watched all of the new casinos being built out there, I know that when
something was spectacular and different it stimulated the whole market. The old
places in Las Vegas that didn’t reinvest or keep up with the times had
implosion parties. I think that Revel is great for the city. The money they are
investing here will create jobs, stimulate the economy and bring new people
into the market. There hasn’t been a casino opening in about seven years.
Before that there was only one opening in 13 years. So this has to happen. We
have to market Atlantic City and not just the properties that we are
responsible for.
There are going to be two casinos in Philadelphia, and one
may be managed by Steve Wynn. How does Atlantic City compete?
Marrandino:
revenues were gaming revenues and only about 10
percent were non-gaming. In Las Vegas you see, in some cases, 70 percent
non-gaming revenues and 30 percent gaming. Some people still don’t understand
that we need to shift our business equation. At Harrah’s we’ve been very active
in changing our business models to reflect the new environment. Atlantic City
doesn’t have a monopoly on legalized gambling in this area anymore, so you
can’t just sit there and count your gaming revenue at the end of the day.
If you had the power, what would you do to improve the
city?
Marrandino:
Convenient, inexpensive parking is a key.
If people can park here there’s a good chance they will spend a few dollars
here. There’s always a lot of talk about improving parking and cleaning up the
city but not that much action. Inactivity frustrates me to no end. You can talk
about stuff, but you have to start doing it. You have to have the intestinal
fortitude to say, “We’re going to do it.” And, you know what, if you move
quickly you are going to make some mistakes. But there has to be more action
and less talk about action.
What about Bader Field [Atlantic City
Municipal Airport]? There’s been talk over the years that it could accommodate
one to four casinos.
Marrandino:
I
think that we need to focus on the core. There are non-gaming amenities that
could go into Bader Field to improve the city. We need to have good
destinations, not new casinos, at Bader Field.
Anything else you would like to add?
Marrandino:
In
a nutshell, we have to work together. We have to create a destination. Most of
all, we have to make it fun. We need to look at the competition. Pennsylvania
has location, location, location. But it’s a casual gaming experience. You’re
not going to want to stay there. We have to continue to work on a new business
model that’s not centered only on gaming. We’re trying to do that with
advertising that’s sexy, luxurious, fun and emphasizes that Atlantic City can
be a romantic getaway. My mantra is, there’s already lots of good stuff here.
We are already cool and fun, but we have to get our story out.
Marrandino Bio:
Don Marrandino joined Harrah’s in 2003, initially working
in Lake Tahoe, and rose to become manager of five of the company’s Las Vegas
Strip resorts: Harrah’s, Bally’s, the Flamingo, Paris and the Imperial Palace.
He began his career at Bally’s Atlantic City, working in the hotel and
advancing into management. He moved to Las Vegas in 1989, worked under Tony
Marnell at the Rio, then moved to Station Casinos. He served briefly under
Peter Morton as chief operating officer of the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in
Las Vegas and also worked on the development of Wynn Las Vegas. He is
best-known for his successes on the entertainment side, scoring the Rolling
Stones for a concert at the Hard Rock, bringing Toby Keith’s I Love This Bar
and Grill to Harrah’s Las Vegas and securing Donny and Marie Osmond for the
Flamingo.
Lloyd Levenson
ldlevenson@cooperlevenson.com
Lloyd Levenson is CEO and chairman of the Casino Law Department of the Atlantic City/Las Vegas law firm Cooper Levenson (www.cooperlevenson.com). He can be reached at (609) 344-3161.
Did you enjoy this article? Click here to subscribe to the magazine.
