By Jalene Moman, Marketing and Communications Coordinator, The Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce
2-minute read
“If you’re not a gambler or a gamer, you think, ‘Why would I want to go to a casino?” Then they realize the other amenities we have: the great hotel, the great pool area, the great meeting and conference space, and the food is just unbelievable!” – Tick Rowson, Director of Marketing and Special Events, South Beach Casino & Resort.
Owned by seven First Nations and situated on the Brokenhead Ojibway Nation Reserve, South Beach Casino & Resort is a quick 30-minute drive from Winnipeg, and a one-stop shop for entertainment and hospitality.
Last month, we sat down with Tick to discuss his favourite part of the job, what’s new at the facility, and why guests love coming back.
Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce (WCC): What do you love about your job at South Beach Casino & Resort?
Tick Rowson (TR): What I love most about my job is the people. We have an unbelievable frontline staff that does an amazing job; comments we receive are consistently above 95% about how friendly, helpful, and clean the facility is. Our management team is also unbelievable; it’s an amazing atmosphere to be part of. And of course, our customers are great. We have regular customers, new customers, happy customers –when they win– less happy customers when they don’t. It’s the people who make it a great place to work.
WCC: For people who may not have visited South Beach Casino & Resort in a while, what’s new or different you think would surprise them?
TR: If you’re a person who likes gaming, we have a fantastic gaming floor that is always getting updated with new machines. If you’re a person who loves live entertainment, we have free live entertainment in our Blue Dolphin Lounge and are now running a concert series that features different acts and bands. We also get a lot of repeat customers because of our Ocean Club free membership. Thursdays are a popular day because we have a special program called “Ten Times the Points,” where you can accumulate extra points on your Ocean Club membership.
As for new amenities, we’ve recently added a beautiful sauna and hot tub to our pool area – which is something people have been asking for, and we delivered. We’ve also added and updated our meeting and conference spaces.
WCC: What would you say to Winnipeg leaders considering South Beach Casino & Resort for an event? What makes your spaces stand out, and how do you accommodate say corporate meetings, or larger celebrations?
TR: For people looking to hold day meetings or overnight conferences, we offer a range of opportunities and room sizes for your gatherings. The Cedar Room is a fantastic meeting room. If you’re looking for something bigger, we have our Grand Ballroom, which is huge and can be used as one room or divided into two.
It’s comfortable, it’s not that far if you’re coming from the big city, and we can basically accommodate everything you require for your events.
WCC: Why is being part of The Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce is important for South Beach Casino & Resort?
TR: It’s important to be a member of The Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce for different reasons. One thing about networking is that it’s a great opportunity that The Chamber provides to hook up with other businesses in Winnipeg and the surrounding areas. It’s also great to see such a wide range of businesses be part of The Chamber. It’s important that we work together as Manitobans and shop local.
For anyone who is not a Chamber member, I recommend you look into it. There are so many opportunities we are learning about, like this one!
