Aria gaming floor
Aria high-limit lounge
airports . Technically the flow and design are great ; it is easy to find the exits .”
Anecdotally , as MGM ’ s casino marketing team moved players from Bellagio to Aria , many were uncomfortable with the new , modern offering and requested to return to the environment that they knew and liked . Notably , the in-room technology was challenging for many , especially older guests , who were used to the intuitive offering of other resorts .
The restaurant offering did not alter the dynamic of the market ; only five of the original 23 at the complex remain today .
In Aria , the nightclub , Haze , was small compared to Wynn ’ s XS that opened in 2008 , and as the EDM boom came to town , the tighter economics precluded the big-name , big-salary DJs from performing there .
The showroom featured Cirque du Soleil ’ s Viva Elvis . It failed to make its second anniversary and was replaced with Zarkana , which itself closed in 2016 . The showroom was subsequently demolished to make way for additional convention space .
Crystals , once envisioned as an outdoor throughfare , became an impediment to pedestrian access to the casino , with all foot traffic directed past a parade of luxury retail stores , at which only a select few could afford to do more than browse .
On December 15 , 2010 , an unwanted birthday present for CityCenter arrived . The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas opened next door in direct competition to Aria . It was newer , shinier and immediately popular with the Gen X customers that Aria sought to attract , capturing the zeitgeist of new Las Vegas in a way Aria did not . It was impossible not to compare the two .
Changing Course
“ Everyone on the team knew that what we projected in 2005 and 2006 wasn ’ t going to happen ; the market had changed . When we opened , the recession was in full bloom , the convention business had dipped and people were spending less ,” recalls Feldman .
The first changes made by opening president Bill McBeath were at the sportsbook , switching out the snack bar to pizza . The Gold Lounge and Deuce , both operated by Light Group , didn ’ t become the destination lounges as planned , and the buffet just wasn ’ t working .
After two years , McBeath left MGM and Aria , and was hired by Blackstone in 2014 to run their newly purchased $ 1.7 billion Cosmopolitan .
Bobby Baldwin , with a 40-year career operating at the highest level , opening The Mirage and Bellagio as president , and as development CEO and president of CityCenter , where no decision was made without passing his eyes , stepped back to the casino floor .
Avoiding the “ chumminess ” of other executives , under Baldwin the property underwent great change . He resolved the operating kinks and brought in the highly acclaimed restaurant Carbone , opened Javier ’ s next to the casino floor . L . A . hotspot Catch was signed up and Mina ’ s American Fish made way for Bardot . Hakkasan acquired the Light Group in 2014 , and the new company oversaw the renovation of Haze to become Jewel in 2016 and the exit of Deuce and Gold lounges .
The casino floor saw Alibi Ultra-Lounge assume a prominent role at the heart of the property and VIP slots and high-limit areas enhanced . Aria took shape under the experienced hand of Baldwin , and the die was cast for the property ’ s future success . After an unfortunate work accident , Baldwin , the man who had as much to do with the operational development of CityCenter and the internal structure of the modern casino as any other , retired .
Baldwin was succeeded by longtime MGM executive Steve Zanella , who stewarded the property through asset sale and Covid , instituting further change throughout , finally transferring to another MGM stalwart , Anton Nikodemus , who now oversees what is colloquially known as the Aria Campus , alongside a recently acquired addition , the Cosmopolitan .
Assessing CityCenter
In his recent Stanford case study , “ MGM Resorts International In 2018 : Time for Another Reinvention ,” former MGM executive Jordan Salmon recalls the challenges facing the company .
Salmon notes that in 2006 , when work began on CityCenter , 40 percent of MGM ’ s revenue was gaming and 60 percent non-gaming , which was approximate to the Las Vegas Strip average of 38 percent gaming , 62 percent non-gaming . However , by 2016 , MGM ’ s mix was still 39 percent gaming , 61 percent non-gaming , whereas the Strip average was 27 percent to 73 percent . MGM ’ s customers led that change , but the company had not responded to the trend .
It was reported that MGM had believed that Gen X was on their way to Las Vegas , and CityCenter would cater for this new demographic . In 2009 , as CityCenter opened , 27 percent of visitors were under 40 years old , with an average age of 50 . In 2022 , that was 53 percent under 40 , with an average age of 40.7 .
Murren saw the need to transform MGM from a gaming to an enter-
44 Global Gaming Business SEPTEMBER 2023