Key figures in gaming, whose companies are helping to drive innovation and growth at tribal casinos, share their exciting products, services and insights with Indian Gaming magazine. Here is what they had to say…
John Hinton, Principal / Director of Native American Projects
Bergman, Walls & Associates
We are excited to see brick-and-mortar casinos reinvesting in their properties through expansions, refreshes, and remodeling to keep guests happy and returning for new experiences. Entertainment venues, such as theaters and multi-purpose rooms, are also being added or expanded to enhance the guest experience. Additionally, we’re witnessing more partnerships forming between commercial and tribal casinos, which is very exciting to see.
Brett Ewing, Principal
Cuningham
The proliferation of gaming continues to grow and mature all across commercial gaming and tribal gaming. We’ve developed some really great partnerships, not only with clients, but with consultants and developers, who come in and help companies get out of the ground with new builds. Obviously, the amenity side of gaming, including sports and entertainment, is getting stronger and stronger, and we feel Cuningham brings those additional skill sets to these projects through our experience in other markets, such as Universal and Disney projects in California.
Kelly Myers, Director, Gov’t Affairs
Gaming Laboratories International (GLI)
We’re very excited to be in our 35th year at GLI helping tribes and regulators on any standards and information that they need. We’re most excited to see the growth that tribes are experiencing, not only on their traditional lands with Class II or compacted games, but also as they move into commercial gaming. Anything that they need, whether it is advice on new products, help with technical standards, regulations or cybersecurity, we’ve been honored to be able to continue to have that partnership with them.
Joseph Guiste, Sr. Marketing Strategist
Imagine This
We’re excited because we’ve introduced a number of new brand partnerships to our collection. We have Tommy Bahama, Vince Camuto jewelry, Paris Hilton and a number of items from Wolfgang Puck. We have our original brands, of course, but these new brands have invigorated and added a little spark to what we do. We’re excited about that. And we’re exclusive with Paris and with Wolfgang in the casino industry.
The key is to make sure that we have products out there that customers like. We carry our own inventory, so you’re not dealing with a third party. Even before we put products out to the public, we test them with some key players – people who have been working with us for a while. Because ultimately, we take everything back that is not distributed, so we have to make sure that people love it. We know when we provide products to a casino, the redemption is good.
Robert J. Gdowski, Principal / Director of Hospitality Design
JCJ Architecture
We’re thrilled to be collaborating with several clients who are eager to challenge the traditional design conventions that have long defined the casino resort industry – conventions that haven’t evolved as quickly as technology and guest expectations.
This is especially evident in our work with tribal nations, whose commitment to land stewardship is reflected in the creative solutions we’re developing together.
Dave Kubajak, SVP Sales, Marketing & Operations
JCM Global
Just before G2E we announced that our Intelligent Cash Box (ICB) ASAP robotics system – which we installed at Motor City Casino Hotel in September of last year – celebrated its one-year anniversary with over 200,000 cash boxes processed on it. By the end of next year, we think we’ll be somewhere close to 600,000. Everybody always said, ‘It’s amazing. Everybody loves robots,’ but everybody said the same thing, which was, ‘I do not want to be the first.’ Motor City has been a partner with us for many firsts. They were the first place we ever put our Intelligent Cash Box system back in 2004, and they have been a partner for us on everything from our core product – bill validators and printers – to our systems technology, to our robotics technology, to our digital signage. Hitting that one-year mark, Dave Nehra, Motor City CIO, said, ‘You tell anybody, call me. I will tell them why they should buy this system too.’ Having the CIO of a casino tell you that is a big deal. We’re really proud of that.
The other milestone is that we have over 300,000 machines now live and connected to JCM systems. It’s a big accomplishment to know that one in every four machines in North America is plugged into us. Additionally, two years in a row, we have won most innovative product at G2E. If you go back two years, it was ICB ASAP; if you go back to last year, it was the DSS Clear technology, and we continue to enhance it with higher resolution and different offerings. This year we showcased DSS Clear Circle.
We focus on the architectural side of the industry to give people unique digital signage solutions that create a better environment in their casino. You want to have a draw. You want to have something unique. You want to give people the sports betting experience. You want to give them the live TV experience. We do all of that. And each year, we’ve been able to bring something new that nobody else has had.
Gerard Starkey, SVP Marketing & Communications
Kambi
What excites us the most is when we work with tribes, we enter into long-term partnerships, which is really great – to have that strong partnership we can build over a longer period of time. We have some powerful technology when it comes to the retail side of things on property, and what we try to do is work closely with tribes to optimize that as best as possible. We understand that when it comes to inserting sportsbooks into casinos, it’s no small deal. It usually means removing some casino machines. So, we work with operators to optimize it as best as possible. We have an absolutely fantastic array of tribal partners that we’re working closely with all over the country. We have earned, over a long period of time, a reputation as being the premium sportsbook supplier in the industry. We have a great set of partners, and the more partners we bring on just strengthens the sportsbook even more with the data that provides. I think next year, it will be more of the same, to be quite honest. We’re working hard on the automation of trading, which will bring even greater experiences to patrons – whether it’s online or in the casino itself. The rollout of that will only increase the exciting experiences we’re already providing with our tribal partners.
Andrew Cardno, Co-Founder & CTO
Quick Custom Intelligence (QCI)
The single biggest thing I enjoy right now is seeing the realization – the moment, the light in the eyes of tribal nations – when they recognize that their casinos have transformed into incredible resorts, and the opportunity for QCI to be their partner in managing everything as a coordinated, well-put-together customer experience. The discussions we’re having are just incredible. Tribes are coming in and saying, ‘I’ve got five different vendors running my business. How do I get a view of my customer? How do I organize it? How do I interact with my customer in a meaningful way?’ These discussions are happening again and again, and it’s very positive. It’s the next phase of the industry.
I got started in geographic information systems in New Zealand, helping to map Indigenous land. Being part of a program that returned billions of dollars in reparations and restored land and fishing rights was an incredible privilege. Now, being part of the economic force helping tribal nations in America is just as incredible. I love working with so many different tribes and helping them. When I have that special relationship and can really sit down and ask, ‘How can we be a part of your future? How can we help you? What do you truly need?’ That is a very, very special moment for me.
Sean Rivers, Platform Evangelist
Relay
From a product perspective, we’re most excited about launching our second device, RelayX. It gives us more capabilities, includes a screen for the first time, and is much louder so we can start working in many different industries. Working with casinos, these are much louder environments than our traditional hotels that we work in. Additionally, RelayX offers real time translation. That’s been a game changer – to be able to talk in real time and translate in 36 languages. So, some really amazing technology. We’re going to see a big change in the industry next year and I’m excited about that.
Paul Gordon, SVP of Sales
Rymax
The excitement is that the industry is still expanding, which is great. We’re seeing new casinos opening up in more states. Online gaming is bringing in a younger audience, which was a major concern for casinos over the last five to ten years, when many in the industry wondered about the age of boomers and who was going to follow them into casinos. The frequency of play is really strong. The promotions are good. We’ve had a phenomenal year, which is great. Looking at G2E, the level of participation seemed to be at pre-pandemic levels, which is impressive. It was a very large show. These are the things we’re most bullish about.
What’s interesting is that post-pandemic luxury products are very much coming back into demand – travel products, like suitcases, you couldn’t give that away three years ago. That’s all come back, which is really good. Health and beauty remain very strong as well; even when people were home, they still wanted to exercise and look good. Most categories have rebounded well.
We go into some different types of brands because we like to appeal to an eclectic audience, so we have Manscaped and Spanx – those aren’t normal things that are in most programs, but it’s a demographic that’s out there, and so we try to expand in that area. We’re still very, very big in fashion, whether it’s Tory Birch, Kate Spade, MCM or Michael Kors. Electronics are still strong, but TVs have dropped off considerably. Everyone pretty much has gotten a smart TV and a big flat panel TV; actually, a younger demographic doesn’t even watch TV anymore – they’re just watching a phone or tablet. So that category has seen a drop off. But overall, things have been performing well across the board.
Joe Oprosko, President & CEO
Veridocs
We are most excited about our new Document Imaging module, which creates a Veridocs file so you can access everything on a player – credit applications, signature cards, and other important documents – in one place. And then we also have our TrueListReview module, which can do a full run of the player loyalty system against all of the watchlists to see if anybody has become a bad guy. It can also see if anybody has become a good guy and can start gambling again on property. Additionally, our Evolution product, launched last year, continues growing and we just keep adding modules to it.
We recently worked with Pechanga Resort Casino, and they are currently integrating us with their player enrollment system. The Seminole Tribe of Florida has implemented our TrueListReview module across all of their properties, a powerful compliance tool for them. WarHorse Casino Omaha, which is part of the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska, is another client, and we are also in their Lincoln location as well.