Our special interview episode with Andrew Pascal of ālon Las Vegas and PlayStudios. This was a fun conversation that attempts to get at some of the thinking behind the upcoming resort. We thank Andrew and his team for joining us.
This episode was recorded live in the showroom at The D Las Vegas as part of vzzzt 2016.
BONUS: Want to listen to use talk about Macau? That podcast is here: http://www.macautripping.com/podcast/
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Vegas Gang,
Andrew Pascal was the worst interview in Vegas Gang history. The guy gave no information other than self absorbed love of himself. He waxed on about offering what Vegas used to have and mentioned value and customer service. I cannot imagine elon will offer any value to anyone but the very wealthy. Will there be reasonably priced shows or dinners, good rules and pay tables in the casino, reasonably obtainable comps? The guy refused to answer any question in a straight forward direct manner. He was painful. I could not get through it all.
I commend you for trying by coming from different angles in your questions. Unfortunately, he simply did not get the point of interviews–sharing ideas and the transfer of information.
Rant over.
Thank you!
Great interview. Andrew Pascal and his partners needs to raise at least $1.5 billions dollars to build Alon so doing this interview was a very good idea. Mr. Pascal talks about “individual entrepreneurs” and how Las Vegas used to be in the past and that is part of the reason why Derek Stevens has been so successful with The D in downtown Las Vegas. Mr. Stevens is on the casino floor meeting people and shaking hands and Mr. Pascal says he will do this also if Alon gets built.
Between MGM Resorts International and Caesars Entertainment they own 19 hotel-casinos in Las Vegas and have around 65,000 hotel rooms so something different like Alon might work. Hiring Jesse Waits away from Wynn to run the
nightlife operations at Alon was a fantastic idea. The nightclubs and restaurants are the two main reasons Las Vegas is extremely popular today. Alon has a great location across the Strip from Wynn and Encore so hopefully this gets built.
Cross posting from VT since the top poster did the same:
Hi,
Thanks for the comments. Sorry if you didn’t find it interesting.
I don’t equate value with cheapness. There are many things that are expensive that offer tremendous value. There are many cheap things that do not have value. It does seem that Alon is aiming at the higher end of the market but that doesn’t mean they can’t create a product of value for those customers.
They’ve assembled a truly top-notch team. The best of the best. If they don’t succeed in the market it won’t be because they didn’t have a carefully considered plan.
I think some of the questions you were hoping to get answers for – reasonably priced shows or restaurants, obtainable comps and even the rules in the casino – are an interesting lens with which to analyze what they are potentially trying to do. Based on the vibe I’ve gotten, I think they are going for customers who are looking for a different type of experience and likely one where those sorts of questions are less important. I don’t mean to sound like a prick – not all products are for all consumers and one of the best things about Vegas is that there are so many options.
I’ve found Andrew to be exceedingly interesting and if that didn’t come across then I failed to some degree and for that I apologize. Thanks for listening.
I was fortunate to be able to make this live event. The conversation was very interesting. He is not going to tip his hand. He had to answer the big question and that was about funding. He did not shy away from that and even cited it as one of the many things he is worried about; even saying its on the top or near the top of the list. He did not hold back in his admiration fro Elaine and the members of his team. I might have been disappointed if he disclosed any more details; its not time yet. On a side note, I have seen Hunter in action now holding live interviews several times. He is always prepared, courteous yet direct, and as good as I have seen anywhere.
I really enjoyed this interview and was lucky enough to get to be there in person. Mr Pascal gave great insight into his management philosophy and what he wants to build without saying very much about what kind of Hotel experience he’s looking to bring to the strip. From the team he’s putting together, I have my fingers crossed that he will try to recapture a little of the magic from the first 7-8 months of Encore. Also I totally agree with Rob, Hunter your interview skills are great, you’ve come along way since your interview with George Maloof in 2008 at the first Podcast-a-palooza. Keep up the great work you guys ! Hopefully I’ll see you at VIMFP