Inside Asian Gaming

INSIDE ASIAN GAMING | January 2011 6 Borgata The Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa, Atlantic City’s highest grossing casino, opened in July 2003, injecting fresh blood into a decidedly stale market that had not seen a new resort opening since the 1990 unveiling of Trump Taj Mahal. Larry Mullin—who served as the Borgata’s President and Chief Operating Officer before assuming his current role as Chief Executive of Tabcorp’s Casinos Division in February 2009—was pivotal to establishing the Borgata as one of the premier entertainment destinations in the US. Mr Mullin points out that prior to the Borgata’s opening, table gaming revenues in Atlantic City had fallen for fifteen years, largely as a result of the arrival of competition from new and better resorts in Las Vegas. Even though Atlantic City is a mere one- to two-hour drive away for 22 million people in New York, Philadelphia and Washington D.C., many of the potential patrons from those cities were opting to fly four or five hours by plane to Vegas, rather than drive to Atlantic City. Mr Mullin responded by introducing “more non-gaming and more entertainment to get people excited about what we felt was still a good experience.” He established a reputation for having “a real passion for entertainment and for the delivery of great customer service,” as Tabcorp Holdings Ltd CEO Elmer Funke Kupper noted on Mr Mullin’s appointment. Rendering of refurbished Star City Hotel & Casino Stellar Initiative Larry Mullin, Chief Executive of Tabcorp’s Casinos Division, outlines his company’s ambitious plan to elevate its four Australian properties Larry Mullin