Macau casino junket operator Meg-Star International appears intent on living up to its mega-name via the opening of two additional VIP gaming clubs.
On Monday, GGRAsia reported that Meg-Star reps had confirmed preparations for “two new openings” of VIP gaming clubs in the world’s top casino hub, despite suggestions that the VIP market is showing signs of slowdown following a sustained period of growth.
One of these new VIP clubs will set up shop in MGM Cotai, MGM China’s new property that is scheduled to open its doors on January 29. MGM had previously suggested that its new venue would open without any junket-led VIP operations.
Meg-Star’s other VIP club will be located at Melco Resorts & Entertainment’s City of Dreams Macau. There is no target date for either club’s opening.
It was only last month that Meg-Star unveiled its new VIP club at Wynn Resorts’ Wynn Macau, featuring nine tables spread across five rooms. The launch brought Meg-Star’s total complement of Macau VIP clubs to five, in addition to its junket operations in Singapore, the Philippines, South Korea and Australia.
Pooh-poohing analyst forecasts for a slowdown of VIP activity in 2018, Meg-Star told GGRAsia that it “maintains a positive view on the development of the Macau VIP market in 2018.”
Meg-Star COO Lu Tsai recently told World Gaming Magazine that all Macau’s junket operators had adjusted their business during the two-year-plus gaming revenue slide that began in 2014. But Meg-Star’s “strong relationships and healthy cash flow” allowed the company to ride out the bumps and take “what was perceived as a downturn to create opportunities for growth.”
That said, Lu said Meg-Star isn’t immune from the headwinds facing the junket industry, and “positive cash flow and timely credit repayment are essential.” The industry had become slack during Macau’s pre-crackdown VIP heyday, but now it is “crucial to review costs with extreme prejudice to ensure operational efficiency.”
Lu acknowledged that “all VIP rooms are similar in nature in regards to what’s in them,” and thus customer service is “the gold standard when determining whether patrons return or not … We have to anticipate what our patrons will require and make our service philosophy active instead of reactive.”
