Given the presence of fellow Tribal properties in the region, how do you manage to distinguish your establishment from the competition?  

Kenneth Manuel, CEO, Gila River Resorts & Casinos: Gila River Resorts & Casinos has really focused on technology, innovation, guest experience and guest service. We’ve really engaged our teams at all four of our properties to ensure we’re taking care of our guests and that’s been a success for us. Treating folks well throughout their stay and as long as they’re with us. Our loyalty program is also a very strong offering that we’ve built over the years. My team has done an excellent job with brand recognition as well.  

Saverio Scheri, COO, Agua Caliente Casinos: That is the question, right? We draw locally from the Coachella Valley and from the LA area, but how do I get customers to drive past all these other casinos that are in Southern California and come to Palm Springs, Rancho Mirage and Cathedral City? It’s not an easy thing to do. If we’re offering the same product as everybody else, it’s almost like, ‘how do I get somebody to drive past one McDonald’s to go to another one that’s an hour and a half away?’ We all have the same games, we all do a pretty good job with customer service, but where we stand out is with our guest experience. We’ve had a focus on guest experience now for a number of years and I think that is the key differentiator for us – from the time you make that decision to come, to the time you get home and everything in between. It’s not just about the product, it’s not just about customer service, it’s about the experience we deliver. The way we do that is we focus on the five senses, and we make sure we touch on all those five senses, no matter where you are, no matter what you do.  

Lana Rivera, President, Graton Resort & Casino: For how we stand out from a competitive standpoint, I truly think  you need to come to our property. It is luxurious. When I was hired six years ago, I had never heard of Graton Resort & Casino. I didn’t know what to expect, but when I stepped foot on this property, it was absolutely beautiful. The Tribe supports us 100%. Our Tribal Chairman is on this gaming floor almost every day, and he has a high set of standards; those standards align right with mine. Capital reinvestment in this property is something we don’t take lightly. Everybody’s going to tell you this, it’s guest service, but there’s some key factors when you say guest service is important to you. You have to deliver on that. Myself and our executive teams, we work weekends, we attend events and when we talk to players; you’re talking to me on the floor. I was actually just throwing a glass away when this gentleman asked me how he could get a drink and I helped him. We just got to talking and that’s how you get to learn people, and have that connection with your guests. That’s key.  

What attributes of the property help attract clientele from markets such as Las Vegas, Arizona or Southern California?  

Kenneth: Gila River Resorts & Casinos operates four different properties throughout the Phoenix Valley in Arizona. Three of our properties are actually located right off of major freeways. So Interstate 10 is a major thoroughfare for us, and we’re very proud that our flagship, the Wild Horse Pass property, is located directly off Interstate 10. It gives us a great location to operate out of. In addition, our Vee Quiva and Lone Butte properties are also directly off of major interstates and freeways. Being one of the closest properties to Phoenix Sky Harbor, our airport, also gives us great advantages.  

Saverio: Well, I’ll tell you this, and you may not want to hear it, but we have better weather than in Las Vegas! We don’t get snow flurries here, we’re usually about seven degrees warmer than you on average, so we definitely have that year-round. But all kidding aside, how do we get people to come down to us? It’s offering a different experience than you have in Las Vegas. Las Vegas is definitely a lot more of that hustle and bustle, nonstop, go, go, go feeling right? Here in Palm Springs, it’s a different kind of experience. It’s ‘you get here and you get to relax.’ You don’t have screaming people, you don’t have a bunch of day parties at the pool, you don’t have crazy people running around at nightclubs and bars. We have fun and there’s a lot of different age groups, but it’s not that same level of, ‘oh my God, can I go someplace to sit and have a nice quiet meal.’ While we still offer that chill vibe, we have the excitement too in the casino or in our showrooms so you get the best of both worlds.  

Lana: I think our gaming floor is the number one factor. I’m extremely proud of it. We try to stay up to date with the best, newest and latest games out there. We’ve had a number of world premieres for games; but it’s just staying up with the current trends.  

What strategic role do you play in helping ensure the sustained success of your property?  

Kenneth: One of the things I’m very proud of is I’m also a member of the Gila River Indian Community. Being the Chief Executiee Officer for my own Tribe and Community puts me in a great position to not only lead the Gila River Resorts & Casinos enterprise, but also be able to give directly back to my community. I have a great relationship with our Governor, Lieutenant Governor and members of the community council.  We’ve established a long history of trust, so just building upon that and being able to generate revenue for the community is something I have a vested interest in. I’ve said this before, it’s almost like running the family business, which is something I’m really proud of. But I can’t do it alone, and I’m very fortunate to have an amazing executive team and leadership team that helps us achieve our mission statement.  

Saverio: I have a fantastic team that I work with. I have a GM at each of the properties, because I’m responsible for all three, and what we try to do is make sure each property has its own personality. So I work with not just our GMs, but our entire executive team to make sure that, first and foremost, we’re delivering on that guest experience I talked about. That we’re coming up with innovative ways for our guests to have fun, game, see shows, relax in the spa, all those different things. And again, my success is really because I have a fantastic team.  

Lana: I’m a gambler and I have high standards myself. When we’re walking the floor, I’m just looking for critical factors to make sure we’re here and we have the right tools for our team. I talk to our team members. I’m readily accessible to them and I’m always asking and inquiring, ‘do you have the right tools to be able to do your job?’ I don’t know if anybody is ever going to say there’s an advantage to being a gambler, but there’s certainly an advantage when you’re an operator because you’re out there on other casino floors. If there’s something that is truly the latest and greatest, I get to see it, experience it and, if I like it, bring it back to the property.  

How does the property not only provide opportunities for the Tribes in which they serve, but the surrounding community as well?  

Kenneth: We are one of the largest employers in the Gila River Indian Community and very proud of the fact we have a large percentage of members from the community who actually work at all four of our properties. A lot of folks have built their careers at Gila River Resorts & Casinos, many who have been there 15, 20, 30+ years, including myself who’s been here for about 31 years. Not only do we provide employment, but we also provide training. We provide mentorship programs and have had a number of successful candidates who completed our mentorship program and now exist in leadership positions. But we also give back to our surrounding communities. Gila River Cares, which is the philanthropic arm of our business, does an amazing job of supporting organizations throughout the state of Arizona and I’m very proud that we continue to do this and create those experiences for other folks too.  

Saverio: Well I believe we’re the second-largest employer in Riverside County, which is pretty substantial, and the Tribe can date themselves back in this area over 10,000 years. That is just incredible. When you think about the evolution of Palm Springs in the Coachella Valley, they were the first ones here, and they have worked to really become great community partners. There’s an amazing amount of donations that they provide throughout the entire community and there’s very few people they don’t help. They work hand-in-hand with the development of the Coachella Valley. Their reservation is located throughout the entire valley almost, and they work to develop that in very meaningful ways. You couldn’t ask for a better community partner, especially with them having so much land. They really  do work hand-in-hand to develop this area, and they’re just great community partners.  

Lana: One is just providing well-paying jobs. We pay higher than the state minimum wage; our benefits are absolutely amazing. It’s just unbelievable. We’re also good partners within the community. Through our HR program, we provide plenty of help with charity. Not only funding, but we support them with our time. Many of our team members go in for community days where we’ll clean up the creeks or we’ll go help the Humane Society. There’s a group of teams that will go in and just spend 55 hours a day helping the community. It’s really fantastic.  

How can someone in your position, or the property in general, work with fellow Tribes to ensure sovereignty remains at the forefront?  

Kenneth: I’m a firm believer that Tribal casinos are strongest when they collaborate, share best practices and advocate collectively for sovereignty. For example, at Gila River Resorts & Casinos, our leadership team has, over the course of time, visited other Tribal venues to learn from their development programs and service offerings. In addition, when it comes to the Tribes in Arizona, they successfully collaborated with the recently amended and restated compact, so it’s great to see Tribal leadership working together for the common good and common cause of their communities, nations and reservations.  

Saverio: That’s a great question. There’s revenue sharing between the California Tribes because that’s something that’s important to them. Tribes in general work with other Tribal communities to help them develop not just casinos and not just casino games, but all different types of things.  Educational, schools, infrastructure, fire, police, healthcare. It’s very important for the Tribes to do that while at the same time maintaining their sovereignty. That’s something they work very hard at. They spend a lot of time in Washington DC, Sacramento and it’s something that really works.  

Lana: I think online sports betting or online gaming, especially illegal online gaming, is probably the best example of that. It’s going to require all of the Tribes to come together to ensure we’re paying attention to that, focusing on it and we’re fighting for our rights.