With net revenue jumping 17.6 per cent to $704.6m (2018: $599.2m), gross operating profit saw a tumble of 29.6 per cent from $123.5m to this year’s $87m.

First opening to the public on the same day last year, Wednesday 27 June, initial reports suggested that the introduction of Ocean Casino Resort, at the former Revel, and Hard Rock, on the Trump Taj Mahal site, would drive down profits, despite adding more jobs and hotel rooms, which has thus far been the case.

The figures, released by the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement, show that the two new entries reported operating losses for the period, with it suggested that the expensive process of attempting to attract individuals through their doors has taken its toll.

For the first quarter of the year Hard Rock posted a $6.1m loss, contrasted to Ocean Casino Resort’s $10.3m, with across the board operating profit declines only bucked by Resorts Casino.

Its 79.8 per cent swing, driven by a slightly small showing last year, saw it reach $3m from $1.6m, as Borgata retained its place as market leader despite a 12 per cent dip, with its operating profit coming in at $39.7m (2018: $45.1m).

Bally’s earned the unwelcome honour of seeing the largest percentage decline of the nine land-based establishments, with its operating profit falling from $6.2m to $2.8m, a 54.4 per cent decline.

Of the rest Caesars fell 13.6 per cent to $10.8m (2018: $12.5m), Golden Nugget is 5.6 per cent down to $9.4m (2018: $10m), Harrah’s reached $16.5m (a 41.9 per cent dip from $28.4m) and Tropicana declined 5.3 per cent to $16.5m (2018: $17.4m).

Looking at the internet only entries, Resorts Digital saw a huge swing from a $815,000 loss in 2018 to $1.8m this year, while Caesars Interactive Entertainment NJ dropped 5.7 per cent, as it reached $2.74m from $2.9m.

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Launched on June 28 of this year, a day after the former Trump Taj Mahal property opened its doors to the public, Hard Rock Online Casino debuted within the Garden State almost four and a half year after it saw its first regulated online casino go live.

HardRockCasino.com, offering “an unparalleled online gaming experience and industry-first rewards program,” secured internet gaming win of $1.01m for the month of October, adding to year-to-date figures of $2.4m.

Promising New Jersey residents and visitors a choice of “more than 300 playable slot machines, all your favourite table games, live dealer games and more through the Hard Rock Casino app for iOS and for Android,” the firm also praised its Wild Card Rewards loyalty program.

Offering “first of its kind integration,” players can earn and use their online comps at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino Atlantic City for luxury hotel rooms, meals at award winning restaurants, tickets to the hottest shows in town and more.

“When we launched HardRockCasino.com alongside our Atlantic City property four months ago, we did so with the goal of creating a fully integrated online and land-based experience unlike any other in New Jersey,” said Kresimir Spajic, SVP Online Gaming at Hard Rock International. “Hitting this milestone so quickly, in such a competitive market, is proof that we are giving players the offers, games and rewards they want when they play online, on mobile or on the boardwalk.”  

This comes after HRI announced it is to ramp up its global CSR initiatives after appointing Paul Pellizzari as vice president of global social responsibility, who is to hold overall accountability for the growing entertainment brand’s social responsibility programmes, initiatives and strategies.

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Hard Rock International, who spent around $500m renovating the former Trump Taj Mahal property, debuted its offering on 27 June, under the tutelage Matt Harkness, who oversaw the planning, construction and opening of the property.

The Florida based organisation has now announced that Harkness is to be replaced by Joe Lupo, who takes the reigns after previously serving as president of Hard Rock’s Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Tampa entity.

Jon Lucas, Hard Rock International’s chief operating officer, stated: “I would like to thank Matt for his contribution to Hard Rock Hotel and Casino Atlantic City, and appreciate his efforts leading the successful opening of this exceptional property.”

No official reasons has been issued for the sudden change, with Hard Rock simply saying Harkness is to assume “new responsibilities” within the organisation, but offering no further detail as to what that could possibly entail.

Prior to joining the Seminole Hard Rock in Tampa, Lupo, who will officially take up his new role on November 1, spent 30 years at Boyd Gaming Corporation, including 13 years at its Borgata Hotel Casino and Spa property, its interest of which was sold for approximately $900m a little over two years ago.   

Occupying the role of vice president, Lupo’s duties included overseeing gambling, marketing and entertainment.

“Joe has been a talented and proven leader at our Tampa property and previously at Borgata, creating significant property success in both markets,” added Jim Allen, Hard Rock’s chairman and CEO.

During its first full month of operation Hard Rock Atlantic City came in third for total gaming revenue, with its $32.7m topped only by Tropicana ($37m) and Borgata ($76.6m).

August’s $31.2m was another solid showing, but the property slipped to fourth as Harrah’s ($31.5m) joined Tropicana ($35.7m) and Borgata ($76.3m) in topping its figure.

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The firm’s latest licensee opened on June 28 following a $500m renovation, with the former Trump Taj Mahal laying the foundations to commence with a live casino service complete with “a comprehensive line-up of Evolution live tables”.

Set to be included as part of the deal are american (double zero) roulette, blackjack with side bets and bet behind, baccarat, three card poker, ultimate Texas hold’em poker and automated slingshot roulette.

“As well as building Atlantic City’s premier destination casino, we want Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City to be the number one online destination for New Jersey players,” said Lee Terfloth, director of product and igaming at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City. “Evolution is the ideal partner to help us achieve that. They have a proven track record in multiple European markets that they are the live casino leaders.”

Furthermore the property is to launch three Evolution live blackjack tables, exclusive to its own players, whilst also hosting a dual play roulette table on the main gaming floor.

This is to also be made available to Evolution’s European network of operators, allowing their own players to place bets alongside those on property.

James Stern, Evolution’s director of business development and land-based sales, commented: “We are very proud to be working with Hard Rock as one of our US licencees. As part of the fantastic mix of Hard Rock live casino services that will be offered to players in New Jersey, we are especially excited by the potential of the Evolution dual play roulette table that will be located on the new casino’s main gaming floor.

“By allowing remote online players to play alongside on-premise players at the same gaming floor table, dual play will give remote players a taste of what will be a unique Hard Rock experience.

“In a very competitive market where the power of the brand is so important, dual play, alongside all the other world-class live casino games to be offered to the Hard Rock’s online players, will play an important role in drawing players to this exciting new Hard Rock property.”

Players will be able to enjoy all of these live games on desktop, tablet or smartphone.

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Neither party has confirmed the deal publicly, but the correspondence notes that Hard Rock Atlantic City and bet365 both signed a letter of intent on 19 June. The correspondence was signed by DGE Director David Rebuck on 25 June.

The letter serves as a temporary approval for bet365, and it will remain valid until 31 July as the British bookmaker obtains a licence to operate in the East Coast state.

The all-encompassing $375 million renovation of the former Trump Taj Mahal building, subsequently rising to $500 million, opened its doors last Thursday, with two nights of entertainment – for which a first-year budget of $30 million has been set aside.

Hard Rock Chairman Jim Allen previously noted: “The brand itself is about entertainment.

“Within these amenities we certainly offer hotel, dining, and other experiences. But there is one universal language and that’s music. We are the only brand that works to bring people together through music.”

Allen later added: “We could have re-carpeted and put some memorabilia up and that would have been fine.

“But we made a commitment to making sure Atlantic City grows, so it was important to make sure guests got to come see something completely new and re-done.”

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The Casino Control Commission granted a license to the worldwide hotel, gambling and entertainment company owned by Florida’s Seminole Indian tribe.

The casino is set to reopen on 28th June — the same day as another shuttered boardwalk casino, the former Revel property, will reopen as the Ocean Resort Casino. Together, the new casinos will restore as many as 6500 of the 11,000 jobs Atlantic City lost when five of its 12 casinos went out of business since 2014. Casino officials say Hard Rock has received 50,000 applications for 4,000 jobs.

“What we have in store is going to blow people away,” said Jon Lucas, Chief Operating Officer of Hard Rock International. “It’ll be a boost for the reinvention of Atlantic City.”

Four casinos — The Atlantic Club, Showboat, Trump Plaza and Revel — went out of business in 2014, with the Trump Taj Mahal following suit in 2016.

Hard Rock is now renovating the casino resort that Trump opened in 1990.

“We could have just re-carpeted and put up some [memorabilia]. But we want to grow Atlantic City rather than just moving people from an existing facility,” said James Allen, CEO of Hard Rock International.

The casino has budgeted $30 million for entertainment in its first year, Allen noted. That will fund over 300 nights of live music, comedy and drama. Carrie Underwood and Pitbull will be the first acts to perform there.

The casino will have no debt, being self-financed by Hard Rock and its local investment partners, Allen added. The resort also plans to offer internet gambling and sports betting, if it is legalised.

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Figures released by the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement show a total revenue increase of 0.9% to $3.54bn for the full year of 2017, which rises a further 0.5% to $3.73bn with third party sales factored in.

The regions casino gaming saw a 1.6% gain year-on-year, reaching $2.5bn, while takings from ‘entertainment and other’ saw a 6% increase to $164.5m.

Food and beverage sales were down 0.8% to $427.2m, while room revenue also saw a decline of 3.6% to $391m, despite a 5.4% rise in occupancy rates across Atlantic City’s casino hotels, with a figure of 86.9% reported for the 12 month period.

Furthermore, the region reported a 23.7% gain in gross operating profit for FY2017, aided by a 39% increase in the final quarter of the year, with six of the seven properties all headed in the right direction.

It’s Borgata who highlight the largest numbers, with a 19.5% rise shooting its profit from $244.7m in 2016 to $292.4m, trailed by Caesars who also reported a 19.5% increase to $92.1m.

The biggest percentage gain on the other hand was shown by Tropicana, with a profit of 71 percentage points to $91.9m, while Harrah’s was the only property to report a decline, showing a 2.7% decrease to $115.8m.

Of the remaining trio Bally’s rose 8.1% to $42.1m, Golden Nugget climbed 38.3% to $40m and Resorts gained 23.6% to $23.1m, while Atlantic City’s duo of operators in the United states regulated online market, Resorts Digital and Caesars Interactive Entertainment, also reported profits of $14.4m and $11m respectively.

Later this year two new entries make their way into the fold, with Hard Rock Atlantic City opening at the former Trump Taj Mahal, and Ocean Resorts Casino welcoming guests to the ex-Revel.

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Figures released by the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement reveal that total revenue for the period came in at $184.3m, representing a 9.9% decrease from the $204.6m figure shown in the same period during 2017.

Only the Golden Nugget posted a profit for the first month of the year, seeing revenue rise 1.7% from a little over $23m to $23.4m.

It was Caesars whose figures represented the largest decrease in numbers, tumbling to $21.7m from $28.2m, a 23% decline, followed by Harrah’s who reported a 16.3% drop from $28.1m to $23.5m.

Of the rest Borgata was down 10.2% to $57.7m, Bally’s fell 8.8% to $12.7m, Resorts dropped 6% to $11.6m and Tropicana’s figures showed $26.1m revenue, down 4.4%

It has been reported, however, that these figures are not indicative of how the region is set to perform in 2018, particularly with two casinos, namely the Hard Rock, formerly Trump Taj Mahal, and Ocean Resort Casino, formerly Revel, set to reopen their doors later in the year.

In terms of the New Jersey internet gaming market, revenue saw a 16.7% increase to $21.9m from $18.8m, with the Golden Nugget posting the most impressive figures.

Its 52.8% increase from $4.7 to $7.2m representing a marked rise, with the Borgata, it’s nearest competitor, bringing in a 10.2% increase of $4.1m.

Resorts Digital and Tropicana also saw increases in internet gaming, of 22.9% and 6.1% respectively, representing $3.8m and $3.2m, however Caesars Interactive reporting a 16.9% decrease in its figures, dropping from just over $4m to $3.3m.

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Fifteen residents of New Jersey’s resort city have been selected to participate in the potentially life changing 12 week long program, that will teach construction based skills.

Upon completion, a connection with jobs at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino will be made, whose transformation of the former Trump Taj Mahal into its own branded resort, is scheduled to open in the summer of 2018.    

Hard Rock is the sponsor of the dedicated service, with local neighbourhood group “Friends In Action” helping to identify promising conditions suitable for participation in the scheme.

One 29-year-old set to begin his training next week, has hailed the program for giving him the platform from which to “beat the odds and get away, and not become a statistic.”

Dominick White, residing in a housing project known for crime and drugs, has praised the honest living he can now embark upon, and the opportunity to provide for his family.

Mayor-elect Frank Gilliam, said: “Many times we have people in Atlantic City who say, ‘We don’t have a chance, and that has been true. It’s not everyday you get an opportunity to change your lives.”

The project follows a similar effort made last year, where students worked upon a project overseen by Hard Rock partner Joseph Jingoli & Son.

Students this time around are all set to learn a variety of industry essentials, such as construction math, and learn the basics of heating, ventilation and air conditioning, electrical work and job site safety.

Matt Harkness, president of the Hard Rock casino, added: “This initiative doesn’t just prepare students for construction jobs in Atlantic City. It prepares them for meaningful careers in the building trades.”

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