Are you tired of working from home? There is another option, if you are willing and able to travel to Las Vegas.
Earlier this month, MGM Resorts launched a new offer called “Viva Las Office”, aimed at people who have been forced to work remotely and want a change of scenery. Prices start at $ 100 per night; Upgrades include poolside massages and all-day cabana rentals.
If this sounds a lot like a normal stay in Las Vegas, it is and it isn’t. Yes, MGM is doing its best to meet the specific needs of the WFH crowd. But the hotel and casino chain is also trying to show that it is open to the public again. “The halo effect is really powerful,” says Atif Rafiq, MGM president of trade and growth.
Rafiq is realistic. MGM canceled live entertainment, another Las Vegas giveaway, until it is legal and safe to reestablish public gatherings. Also, many travelers are still afraid to get on a plane, let alone land in a place known for attracting visitors from all over the world. In fact, a recent report from ProPublica, which analyzed smartphone data, showed that Las Vegas casinos have likely become a hotbed for the spread of COVID-19. While the state of Nevada has not disclosed the location of so-called “superprocessors,” Clark County, where Las Vegas is located, remains the center of the state’s COVID-19 infections, with a case rate of 2,464 5 per 100,000 inhabitants.
Still, Rafiq says there are an estimated five million people working from home in the state of California, and he’s counting on at least some of them driving, not flying, to his eastern neighbor to do some research and development. A. Oh yeah, and do your job. Additionally, “Viva Las Office” is just one of many new initiatives designed to revive MGM’s business.
Las Vegas casinos closed in March and then reopened in early June. (The Mirage, one of MGM’s Las Vegas-based properties, is still closed and will reopen Aug. 27.) According to the company, MGM used the “downtime” to accelerate its “digital transformation” plans from six to nine months. “Believe it or not, there really was no mobile check-in for MGM resorts [before the pandemic],” says Rafiq, former chief digital officer for Volvo and McDonald’s.
On June 4, MGM introduced contactless guest registration. Telephones can now be used as keys for both rooms and elevators. Since its reopening, the casino chain has also launched “digital queues” for its groups. And there is a “touch and drop” service for food delivery, which now includes all MGM restaurants, acting as a mini DoorDash within their properties.
In the midst of all these new offerings, it was recently announced that media and technology conglomerate IAC / InterActiveCorp would take a $ 1 billion stake in MGM.
