Alex Philby, International Sales Director, Caesars Entertainment, Las Vegas

Las Vegas’ success is supported by its 84.6 percent occupancy average in 2013, and it counts over 150 thousand rooms. Out of this total, nearly 25 thousand are managed by Caesars Entertainment Group, a leader among casino operator around the globe, which also owns resorts and golf courses.

Its portfolio includes, for example, such historic icons of Las Vegas as Caesars Palace or brand-new The Cromwell, a boutique hotel with a 40-thousand square-feet casino to be opened in one of the most popular intersections of famousStrip, after a 185-million-dollar renovation.

We talked to Caesars Entertainment’s International Sales Director, Alex Philby, on its international scope, new products and relation with the Latin American market.

How long have you been working for this company?

-It’s been nearly ten years and I have had the opportunity to witness its evolution. It’s a great company. I’m glad to work for them. My offices are physically nestled in ParisHotel, which is centrally located, so I can easily have access to our ten properties.

How many rooms do you have in Las Vegas?

-We count on over 25 thousand roomsin Las Vegas. We are the second largest hotel group in the city.

I guess you have one casino per hotel, so you own ten casinos.

-Our resorts have casinos too. We’re the largest casino company on Earth. That gives an idea of the numbers we manage.

Does the group have properties in the Caribbean? How is the business doing out of the United States?

-We presently have more than 35 hotels and casinos, mainly in the States, although we’re also in Canada, Punta del Este… We own eight casinos, with no hotel, in London. They are London Clubs. We have a new project to open several non-casino hotels in the south of China, and we have just been given the green light to open a casino in Korea.   

Does your group have any property in Latin America or the Caribbean?

-We don’t have any at the moment. It’s an outbound area for our market in the United States, specifically in Las Vegas, which is a very important destination for the South American market.
Nowadays, South America -especiallyBrazil- represents an outstanding market for the company. Is Brazil an important outbound market for your hotels?

-It definitely is. It’s presently one of the most significant emerging markets around the globe. Brazil comes after China… All in all, they are the so-called BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China) which are the most interesting emerging markets.

What would be your second ranked marketin Latin America?

-Mexico is number one in Latin America, and it’s followed by Brazil. Colombia is currently gaining momentum, as well as Argentina, Chile and Uruguay.

Can you tell us about any of your new projects?

-We have a new project and we’re very proud of it. The name is The Linq and it’s a mall that includes restaurants and entertainment, right in front of the highest observation spot of the world, called High Roller. It’s bigger than London’s Eye and features 28 cabins with capacity for 40 people. It recently opened its doors to the public and the observation wheel gives a 360º turn in 30 minutes. It stands between our Flamingo Hotel and The Quad. This project has skyrocketed Las Vegas to a new level. It’s a brand-new entertainment concept in the destination and it’s being extremely successful.

Are you planning to open a new hotel in Las Vegas?

-On May 21 we are going to open Caesars Entertainment family’s new hotel, The Cromwell. It’s a small boutique hotel, with less than 200 rooms. It’s going to be the first luxury-boutiquehotel and casino in Las Vegas. It will feature on its roof, and this is the most important element, a swimming pool club opened day and night. It’s going to be perfect for visitors looking for something exclusive, new, chic. It will also include a casino.

There is a must-ask question for me and it has to do with the world of restaurants: the quality and exclusivity of restaurants and chefs. Could you tell us about your most important chefs and restaurants?

-Sure. We count on internationally acclaimed chefs such as Gordon Ramsay, who runs three Caesars restaurants with us. We have a French chef that is one of the best worldwide. We also have chefs from USA, and that’s the case of Giada De Laurentiis, who is going to open a restaurant at the brand-new The Cromwellhotel. We are accompanied by other prestigious American chefs. We also have chef Nobu, who is famous in every corner of the planet and runs a restaurant at Caesars Palace.