Casino Connection Atlantic City

Surfin’ Safari

Brigantine-born Don Marrandino follows his muse to Nevada

by Dave Bontempo

About 2,500 miles west of his Brigantine birthplace, Don Marrandino flourishes in a different climate. Nevada has been a godsend for the former Bally's executive. Two Las Vegas stints, sandwiched around a unique Lake Tahoe assignment, reflect the professional challenge that matches Marrandino's personality. The self-proclaimed "vitamin pill" conquers a property's challenge, and then relocates to another. Few of his stints last more than a couple of years. Talk about staying fresh. Marrandino's assignments have also played into his avocations. The former lifeguard relished the beautiful 72-mile oval known as Lake Tahoe. The former Holy Spirit High School football player entertained Dan Marino, John Elway and non-football luminaries like Johnny Bench, Mike Schmidt and former vice-president Dan Quayle during Harrah's annual celebrity golf classic. And the man who started as a front-desk employee at Bally's now runs entire properties. Marrandino owned the classic job as regional president of Northern Nevada, for Harrah's Entertainment, before recently transferring to Las Vegas. He began serving as the regional president for Harrah's Las Vegas and the Flamingo in early September. From an Atlantic County perspective, he is an example of local-boy-makes-great. "The dream when I started was to be in this spot," Marrandino says. "It was important to watch what the successful people did. I was fortunate to be around many savvy people in Atlantic City and learn all the things that were necessary to move up. "It was exciting to get immersed in the job. Big events, especially the boxing matches involving Mike Tyson, were incredible. It was bigger than life and that had a tremendous effect on the customers. There was a tension about a big fight that you could feel for a couple of days beforehand. It made people feel different." Marrandino began his customer-service ascent by checking customers into Bally's. He viewed the job only as a stint to connect summer lifeguard seasons and even requested a graveyard shift to accommodate the lifeguard schedule. One year later, the waves he rode changed sharply. "I was 22 and realized it was time to get serious about a career," Marrandino says. "It was a great time to be in this business. Atlantic City was dog-eat-dog. The customer-service aspect was everything. It was there in the concerts, like Police in Convention Hall. It was there for every special event. I saw the bus-program wars, the marketing wars; it was all very competitive." Marrandino learned rapidly and finally sought new challenges in Las Vegas. The Rio recruited him to facilitate its transition to nightclubs and an all-suite format. Then came the Hard Rock Hotel, with its unique musical perspective to gaming, attracting a younger clientele. Sandwiched in between these jobs was a gig as general manager of Wynn Las Vegas, a job that dissolved when his authority lessened. Northern Nevada soon beckoned, with the most interesting puzzle yet. Until his recent swing back to Vegas, this was a critical assignment. Unlike Las Vegas' established market, Lake Tahoe needed an identity overhaul. Its pristine location at the end of a long, winding hill presented an irony. Lake Tahoe offered paradise to vacationers, but discouraged gamblers who instead chose Reno, located an hour from Lake Tahoe and just a couple minutes from an airport. This contradicted industry norms. Casinos today easily accommodate both vacationers and gamblers. Marrandino's passion for gaming, coupled with well-channeled restlessness and a sense of customer preferences, produced several ideas. "The outdoor adventures here are phenomenal," says Marrandino, "What's exciting is to add attractions during the shoulder seasons (spring and fall) when the skiing and the lake can't be used so much. This is an established gaming market in need of energy. That's my specialty." Marrandino supplied a niche to attract younger customers. He added a club sponsored by Sammy Hagar and an upscale establishment called Altitude. Marrandino seeks to lure new customers up that windy road to reach Lake Tahoe. "The challenge was finding an amenity that will help grow our business without disrupting the customer base we already have," Marrandino says. "We came up with Altitude, which is one of the best places anywhere. On a weekend night, we're rocking and it does not affect the skiers." Marrandino expended his energy as if he'd just taken a vitamin pill. He exercised early in the morning, and then arrived when players did, around 9:30 a.m. He often stayed into the evening, cavorting around the property and gaining a feel for its operation. In the high-tech, databased age of marketing, Marrandino still uses the human element of observation and interaction. Marrandino is proud that 50 percent of Harrahs' Lake Tahoe business is nationally based. Beyond the obvious sending districts of Sacramento and San Francisco, Tahoe properties need to reach out now that Indian gaming has become prominent in the region. For the moment, Tahoe can ride the wave of his implementations. Another task has summoned the Vitamin Pill back to the desert.

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