For a long time Las Vegas was the fastest growing city in the United States.
"There was a common belief that we -- that we shared that gaming would be more economically resistant to downturns than other forms of discretionary spending. And we were wrong."
In 2008, the recession hit and tourists stopped coming. MGM almost had to pull the plug on their huge City Center project. "I walked out that door, I looked up and there were four helicopters circling overhead because they wanted to catch for the evening news the bankruptcy of City Center," says MGM Resorts CEO Jim Murren.
To survive, their hotel industry had to market itself to a new type of customer. At Caesars Palace, one of the first things to change was its buffet. Gone are the days of salisbury steak and mashed potatoes. Today's customer enjoys gourmet seafood and cheeses. "They're coming and enjoying this very diverse buffet - high quality buffet. And then the next night they're going to the nightclubs. So buffet nightclubs, who would think?"
And would you believe hotels like the Wynn now make more money on some night on their nightclubs than they do on gaming? But the new Vegas isn't confined to the Strip. New attractions are now luring people off it. History buffs can head to the Mob Museum, it's a reminder that even though Sin City is no longer the same, its future may be more secure.
An interesting sidebar to this story is that the money used to save Las Vegas from near destruction came from Dubai, and China...enough investment to bankroll our southern neighbor's revitalization.
