Patrick Nichols, president and CEO of the Venetian Las Vegas, told Nevada gaming regulators that his property hasn’t been harmed by the downturn in tourism and is on track for the property’s best year in history.
Nichols appeared before the Nevada Gaming Control Board as part of his licensing process that will be completed later this month. He said there’s a bifurcation in the marketplace with the lower-end properties hit harder than the luxury segment. The Venetian and adjacent Palazzo cater to more higher-end customers and the Venetian Expo is a top attraction for holding conferences.
“Thankfully, we play in the luxury segment,” Nichols said. “We definitely saw some softness in June and July, but in August and September we had our best months from hotel revenue and occupancy in 26 years. I think the visitation impact is much more on the mid- and low-end market, but the headlines are still bad for Las Vegas. They’re bad for everybody.”
With that national narrative over the value of Las Vegas, Nichols said they’ve taken “a deep dive” into some of the company’s practices and that they’re not immune to being in the headlines as well, which he called misleading, though without spelling them out.
“We’ve taken a robust look at fees, parking, and you name it. We’ve addressed a number of those items to create a more cohesive value opportunity,” Nichols said. “I think in the summer particularly, when it’s more of a leisure customer, we built amenities and products to (target a broader range of customers). We just opened a massive food hall at the resort with hand-picked (establishments) from around the country where you can get a meal for $30 with a drink. If you want to spend more, you can go to one of our fine-dining restaurants. We have options.”
In February 2022, the Las Vegas Sands Corp. sold the Venetian, Palazzo and Venetian Expo for $6.25 million to Apollo Global Management and VICI Properties. Nichols said over the last three years, they’ve put about $1 billion into the resort, renovating 4,000 suites and introducing 11 new restaurants and bars. That’s two-thirds of the capital plan that they set out to do. The next steps include renovating and improving their product offerings at the Palazzo, since The Venetian side is done.
“We’re introducing new gaming spaces,” Nichols said. “It goes back to the question of value and visitation. Value doesn’t necessarily mean cheap, but getting what you paid for. We’re investing in our product to make sure it hits that mark. People may come here and say that’s expensive, but say, ‘It was great. I enjoyed my stay and would pay that again for my experience at The Venetian.’”
Nichols said the Venetian is the only gaming company in Las Vegas that pays its employees health premiums. People need to make a living wage and they don’t need to worry about health care, and said any misgivings about private-equity involvement doesn’t mean going for every last dollar.
“That’s a multi-billion-dollar opportunity if we were to follow the industry trend there, and we decided not to do that,” Nichols said. “There are opportunities to make more money, but the way you describe private equity, I think there’s a little bit of a shift in that. I spent seven years at the Cosmopolitan when Blackstone owned the resort, and they were very pro-take care of the team. It’s the same at the Venetian. I’m a big believer that if we take care of our team, our teams take care of the guests and the rest takes care of itself.”