20 YEARS HISTORY
Mandalay Bay Convention Center Debuts BY RAY SMITH
Mandalay Resort Group shrewdly assessed the future of Las Vegas when it opened the 1.8 million-squarefoot Mandalay Bay Convention Center in January 2003, competing with the dominant Las Vegas Convention Center and Sands Expo for a slice of the lucrative convention and trade show business. Las Vegas was reinventing itself, maturing into much more than a gaming destination, and the convention center would play a key role in establishing Mandalay Bay as a Strip powerhouse. “We had an understanding that Las Vegas was evolving, and we needed to be involved in different segments, especially the meetings and conventions market,” says Ernest Stovall, vice president of hotel sales at Mandalay Bay. It was a $235 million investment on the part of Mandalay Resort Group, rebranded from Circus Circus Enterprises. Mandalay executives priced show floor space at 30 cents 42 Oct/Nov/Dec 2023 Exhibit City News
a square foot, beating the Sands’ price by a nickel, still a dime more than the tax-funded Las Vegas Convention Center’s 20 cents a square foot. It was 15 cents a foot on installation and dismantling days. The convention center debuted with the pool and spa industry’s Aqua Show and was the first venue in Las Vegas to host Barrett-Jackson’s collector automobile auction in 2008. Top shows at Mandalay Bay CC include the ISA International Sign Expo, IMEX America, Licensing Expo, SuperZoo West, and Black Hat USA. PPAI (Promotional Products Association International) has held its annual expo there since the opening. Spacious And Luxurious Twenty years later, Mandalay Bay Convention Center remains a competitive force in a city boasting 10 million square feet of convention and meeting space. It drives occupancy and average daily room rates at the upscale 3,200-
room Mandalay Bay hotel and casino, now owned by Vici Properties, and operated by MGM Resorts. “Over the years, Mandalay Bay’s team has worked to keep the property and convention space current and fresh, meeting the needs of the modern customer,” Stovall says. “We’re always looking for ways to enhance the guest experience.” The convention center grew to 2.1 million square feet in 2014, ranking as the fifth
largest in the United States. Designed by Las Vegas-based Klai Juba Wald architecture, the interior evokes a feel of luxury with its marble columns, spacious hallways, and picture windows offering a view of the property’s tropical landscaping and Mandalay Bay Beach, one of Las Vegas’s most revered party pools. Upgraded Technology The facility began a $100 million renovation in 2022,