Vol. 3, No. 2 February 2007
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Only the Best
Atlantic City casino executive remembers fondly his Vegas experience
But, the calendar has changed.
“When I was in Las Vegas, every night was Saturday night, that’s one thing I really miss about it,” says Pilli, who left Caesars Palace last year and joined the Taj as vice president of casino marketing. “I loved everything about Vegas, it was a terrific experience. The place was alive with a certain buzz. To be able to say you worked at Caesars Palace was a tremendous thing because it was the biggest name in gaming.
“It was exciting to go to work. Looking back, it was like the company said, ‘Thank you for working for us all these years and as a reward, we’ll send you to Caesars Palace.’”
The Philadelphia native had worked at Caesars in Atlantic City from 1987-2003, specializing as a host. Then came a rare opportunity. Caesars Palace, the gaming giant that often defined the Strip, had re-armed for the new millennium with a multi-million dollar expansion. It had tabbed industry superstar Mark Juliano to direct the turnaround. Juliano brought out some Atlantic City cohorts, including Pilli and (assistant GM) Rosalind Krause. For Pilli, selected to be vice president of player development, this became the cherry atop a career-long ice-cream cone.
The move had serious implications. He stayed even after Juliano and Krause returned to Atlantic City and intended to make a long-term commitment until Harrah’s purchased Caesars. That development forced him to reconsider.
During the time Pilli served, Caesars enjoyed substantial revenue growth. At one point, it rose more than 40 percent over pre-expansion totals.
“Caesars Palace had the branding, at one time it was the third most recognized name in business behind Coca Cola and McDonalds,” Pilli says. “What a tremendous lineup we had to offer players—everything from the pool, to the shows, the nightclubs and the branded restaurants. Caesars had more celebrity sightings than any property in Las Vegas.
“From the late 1990s on, Vegas had already gone into full gear. You had people paying $300 a night for a room, $300 for dinner, $100-$300 for show tickets and they may not have even been gamblers. The retail and convention business was really cooking. When you add premium players to that mix, that’s pretty awesome.”
Pilli needed to embrace change via the Las Vegas principle of shared wealth. It took awhile to see the benefit of one city broken into many parts.
“You would think the marketing would be the same as it was on the East, but there was one major difference,” Pilli observers. “Customers are in Las Vegas for three or four days, they have more time and they may want to spend some of that at other properties. At first, you are kind of reluctant to provide that, you’re not used to sharing players with other casinos. After awhile you get used to it and what you saw in Las Vegas was how well the properties worked with one another.”
Pilli’s role centered on individual East Coast contacts. He’d bring them west, supply amenities and watch their play skyrocket. This was Pilli’s version of wooing potential Yankees with George Steinbrenner’s credit card.
It was occupational utopia.
“We certainly love the freedom of our positions,” Pilli says of marketing and host personnel. “We think of them as the greatest jobs in the world. We get paid to make sure other people have a good time. The players love it. Who would not love the attention of being picked up at the airport and then being made a fuss over when they checked in? I had always dreamed of getting into gaming and this topped it off.”
Pilli was surprised when Caesars became part of Harrah’s. The cycle continued with the recent purchase of Harrah’s.
“This teaches you never to say never,” Pill says. “I was shocked when Caesars was bought by Harrah’s, which had been thought of as a slot house. Then Harrah’s becomes huge and gets bought out itself. If you have a recognized product, you will be a desirable target for purchase.”
Pilli chuckles over the timing of his Nevada stay. He said he purchased a home six months too late and sold six months too early. Though happy to be reunited with Juliano in Atlantic City, he savors the industry snapshot Caesars Palace provided.
“What it has done with retail, especially the Forum Shops is astounding,” Pilli says. “Over the next 10 years, Atlantic City is going to emulate Las Vegas a lot in that way and it is growing fast.”
He will be there, combining the Atlantic City and Las Vegas eras.
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