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what you see at the other IRs today is a result of what Travellers presented to PAGCOR. AGB: How close to completion is Phase 3? It looks like a massive construction site, but a lot of it is completed. The first to open will be the Hilton Hotel. We’re looking for that to open up by late May 2018. Then we are going to have the Sheraton Hotel Manila, which is now a Marriott brand, and lastly we are going to have Hotel Okura. Altogether, these are the three international hotel brands to add to what we already have. The first gaming component will be the ground floor, which will be as big as the floors we have here within the Garden Wing. It will, in a way, replace the capacity we lost on the second floor, and then we’ll also have the new second and third floors. We will phase them in rather than just open it all in one go. The gaming component will be open early in the first quarter. AGB: What about the plans for Westside City? It will open in 2020. When we look at Entertainment City and we see what everyone else has already done, we’ve found ways in which to create something that fits in the City, but also introduces a different experience. We have drafted the builds numerous times. We are going ahead and we’re doing it, but we’ve changed it many, many times to be something that’s quite unique. AGB: What is RWM’s unique selling point in the Philippines?
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n June last year, the casino was attacked by a lone gunman, who set fire to casino facilities, resulting in the death of 37 guests and employees, as well as the gunman himself. Chief Operating Officer Stephen Reilly speaks to AGB about the recovery from the tragedy and optimism for the future. AGB: What security measures has RWM taken since the incident? PAGCOR came to us as they wanted to make sure that RWM was ready. We hired directly from the Philippine National Police and invited Generals to join our team. We have some of the biggest heads at the table
from a security and safety standpoint. We engaged Black Panda which is one of the best security firms worldwide. They are still with us and engaged for another year. A lot of our renovation work is to build security bunkers. We have had to redefine the industry standards as you can’t settle for just a regular door and dog sniffing the back of cars. We have to make it as pleasant as possible for the guest, but you also need to consider that the world is changing fast, therefore we try to do things with the end in mind. We now have security bunkers and a double layer of security around the property. It’s very expensive, but it’s something we must do. PAGCOR reviewed our plans and I believe
I think one of the things we have is that we understand the local market. If anyone understands business in the Philippines from a retail and property perspective that’s Dr. Andrew Tan (head of Alliance Global). He understands what the market really requires. His finger is on the pulse and he has taught us how to get it as well by opening our eyes and helping us think out of the box and focus on the consumer market. AGB: What segment of the market does RWM focus on? Premium mass was something we actually started. VIP business at the time was volatile with credit risk, though premium mass and mass were doing very, very well and was a stable base, so we are still focusing on this.
Asia Gaming Briefings | February 2018
