4 Coinslot June 14 - June 20 , 2013
Industry
�
TO COMMENT ON ANY ARTICLE
Email : al @ sjc . co . uk
OPERATORS
Coinslot spoke to Steve Hawkins last week to see how his new role as BACTA president dovetails with his day job as managing director of single site operator Essex Leisure .
B
ACTA president Steve Hawkins was at last week ’ s Park Avenue Open Day and as the industry stalwart of 35 years keenly mixed with industry peers , he felt that the Triennial Review was the biggest talking point of the day .
“ We all want to know when the
BACTA president sets out clear goals for two-year term
Triennial Review is coming ,” he told Coinslot . “ If we get it before the end of the year , the 2014 EAG would be a fantastic success because there ’ d be a whole raft of new and ready product which had already been tested for a few weeks .”
Hawkins was keen to point out the importance of an uplift in the Category D prize to £ 10 for the beleaguered seaside sector . “ It ’ s been nearly 20 years since they ’ ve had an increase and if a £ 10 cash jackpot came along , there would be a plethora of new Cat D machines and pushers which the manufacturing sector surely needs . This would be a timely boost to all concerned .”
The fundamental change to Hawkins ’ life since becoming BACTA president , he revealed , has been a requirement to burn the midnight oil due to a daily deluge of emails from BACTA members . That fact notwithstanding , Hawkins has a strong view on what he wants to bring to the role which he has taken on for a two year stint . He said : “ I ’ m not concerned with creating my own legacy , I simply want BACTA to be in a stronger position in two years ’
Gaming doyen cuts the ribbon at Praesepe opening
John Stergides , one of the best known names in UK high street gaming , was the guest of honour at the opening of Praesepe ’ s Crystal Casino in London last week .
OPENING
An industry veteran was the special guest at the opening of Praesepe ’ s latest new venue in the capital recently .
It was a poignant ceremony for Electrocoin ’ s John Stergides who operated the venue , located in Tottenham Court Road , before transferring it to Praesepe in March of this year . He confirmed : “ I operated the venue for 23 years and it was an important part of my life as an operator . Praesepe has brought new standards to gaming on the high street and it was very kind of them to invite me to cut the ribbon . I am certain that they will make a huge success of the Crystal Casino as they invariably do with all of their venues .”
Nick Harding , CEO of Praesepe , said : “ John has made really significant contributions to UK gaming
time . This can be achieved by increasing membership levels and trying to get the Triennial through as quickly as humanly possible .”
Hawkins has a pragmatic view of the struggles BACTA faces , however , which he believes are largely down to government whims . He stated : “ In 12 months ’ time , we might all be fighting for something else . It ’ s rare that the government and ourselves agree on anything !”
He saved some words of praise for the work of Electrocoin ’ s John Stergides as co-host of the Park Avenue event . “ John does a sterling job . All the different companies come down to London , pay a little towards their floor space and he puts all the money into the Rays of Sunshine charity . It ’ s a very noble thing and he needs to be commended for it .”
Hawkins concluded : “ As a single site operator , and with pubs still closing down , it does sometimes feel that we have to gain new business just to stand still . While Park Avenue is mainly about meeting customers and suppliers from a social perspective , it does have a vital role to play . Other than EAG , this is the major annual UK event .”
both in his role as a manufacturer and an operator . Suitable central London venues are few and far between and we were delighted that John gave us the opportunity to add the Crystal Casino to our portfolio . It has benefited from a contemporary refurbishment and will become our 80th venue to move to 24 hour opening .”
Stephen Lawrence , chief operating officer , AGCs said : “ Crystal Casino is the sister venue to the Crystal Rooms in Leicester Square giving us two of the very best located AGCs in the West End . It ’ s very much a central London customer profile and I am delighted to confirm that both the old and the many new customers that we are attracting have been really delighted with the refurbishment . I am certain that the Crystal Casino will make a big contribution to the success of the business .”
Embed looks forward to its own ‘ Open Day ’
MACHINE MANAGEMENT
ath-based systems specialist
BEmbed Playsafe was at the Park Avenue Open Day last week and while both David Stenning and Steven Wooley reported brisk business , the pair had an eye on their own open day which is slated for the autumn .
Due to an extensive refurbishment of its Bath offices and a number of important product launches bubbling under , Embed is looking at September or October to showcase its next generation of products aimed squarely at improving both operators ’ and the customers ’ arcade experiences .
“ We ’ ve seen a number of key people today and overall Park Avenue has always been great for us ,” revealed Stenning . He praised the organisation of the event , stating : “ It ’ s run very well - it ’ s all about getting people together in front of products . We always manage to see around 20 customers at this particular event .”
Stenning explained that the office refurbishment , which is currently very close to completion , will make the card payment and redemption back office expert ’ s UK base more efficient .“ Once it ’ s complete , will be able to put a concrete date on an official opening , which will give us the opportunity to invite customers and showcase a number of brand new products . We ’ re under no illusions that Bath is off the beaten track for a lot of UKbased customers , but we believe that a professionally-run open day with the added incentive of seeing new products for the first time will encourage people to come along .”
Wooley concluded :“ Besides , we ’ ve got our three year anniversary of the successful Embed / Playsafe merger coming up , so that ’ s something else we can celebrate .”