Representatives of Palms Casino Resort Las Vegas and San Manuel Casino in California will be among the thought leaders at the International Casino Conference on February 6, 2023, at ICE London 2023.
Laurens Vosloo, chief executive officer of San Manuel Casino at Yaamava’ Resort & Casino in Southern California, and Cynthia Murphey, general manager of Palms Casino Resort Las Vegas, will share their experience during the ICE London’s curtain-raiser event in relation to the opening of the first casino resort in Las Vegas that is owned and operated by a Native American tribe.
Speaking ahead of the event, Vosloo, who is also the chief executive officer of the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians, outlined the prospect of owning a casino in Las Vegas as “a long-term vision” and part of the tribe’s investment and diversification strategy.
“At the International Casino Conference, we will be sharing the story of the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians and how they made history by becoming the first Native American tribe to wholly own and operate a casino resort in Las Vegas,” Vosloo said.
Vosloo also noted that the San Manuel tribe is popular with its generosity and contributions to its communities, expressing this way its “gratitude for the kindness” shown by others throughout the tribe’s “journey to self-reliance and sovereignty.”
The San Manuel Band of Mission Indians is among the leading employers in Southern California and providing for the community is central to the tribe’s values, hence, the history-making acquisition of Palms Casino Resort Las Vegas was no different having created jobs for 1,200 team members half of which were returning casino employees.
Challenges Did Not Stop the Team
The casino was sold to the San Manuel Gaming & Hospitality Authority in May 2021 and was opened in April last year, just 132 days after receiving its operational license, and the casino’s general manager will reflect on the huge logistical challenges of preparing such an iconic hospitality venue.
Commenting on the experience, Murphey said that the team at Palms had managed to open the casino resort in less than four months, doing the “sourcing, hiring, and training” of its team members, “overcoming strategic sourcing and supply chain issues,” as well as “dealing with anything else they had not planned for but had “encountered as the first Tribal entity to own and operate a casino resort in Las Vegas.”
Murphey also expressed her gratitude to the numerous original Palms team members who had decided to rejoin at the opening, highlighting “their energy and enthusiasm” as the reasons for the casino resort to continue to thrive.
She also paid tribute to the vision of the San Manuel Gaming & Hospitality Authority and its desire to create positive change in the Las Vegas community, making it stronger and more resilient with its contributions.