In most casino situations , there should probably always be a “ main casino ” with non-gaming activities around the perimeter and a casino bar in the center , albeit perhaps not as big or as single-purposed as prevalent today .
Along with the redefined “ main casino ” area , it may be time to think about opening a mix of multiple mid-sized self-contained areas and smaller areas with adjacent or nearby non-gaming support . These areas should be retrofitted to accommodate in-house food , beverage , ticket , and other delivery options to be self-sustaining .
Besides size , each of these areas should have varying degrees of flexibility in terms of permanence and usage . Permanent areas might not change but every three to seven years . Multi-use areas would allow use by a limited number of activities / environments without a major overhaul . “ Flex ” areas would be designed to be changed frequently — i . e ., ranging from , say , quarterly to several times per day . Ideally , management should have 25 to 50 environments in which to develop TGEs that align to differing customer NWEs .
Not an exhaustive list of possibilities by any means , but as illustrations of what the above approach portends , think about …
• “ Permanent ” area efforts that already include a single main casino floor with sub-areas allocated within or adjacent to high-limit areas , VIP rooms , Asian , tournaments , and party pits concepts . When downsizing , thought could be given to replace gaming with non-gaming bars , lounges , places to eat , informal entertainment staging areas , rotating “ retail kiosks ,” and just plain furniture to relax and socialize . Today , there is little that does not mix well with gambling .
• “ Midi ” and “ small ” areas could be developed around such themes as other cultures , micro-immigration cultures , feeder market country cues , exotic destination “ escape ” themes , music and movie themes , club-like environments , e-gaming / casino hybrids , generational ( one for each of the five current generations of gaming age today ), holidays , sports , haute couture , and as many other demographic / psychographic / market segment cues that can be thought of .
• Areas could also be developed around “ softer ” environments and activities : e . g ., for
those who want to escape , relax , socialize , or be able to be loud and raucous while watching sports , races , or music videos .
• Stadium seating with everyone facing a center focal point could be expanded to be habitat-like cubes facing multiple directions , and / or developed even more vertically , taking a cue from the Lan Kwai Fong Entertainment Area in cen-
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2020 CASINO STYLE 25