How to save a failing casino, with turnaround consultant Drew Skeen

Turnarounds are rarely about one big fix, and Drew Skeen has spent about 20 years rescuing struggling casinos. On Low Rollers, the Third Planet Media senior editor who hosts the show asks the casino consultant how he assesses a property, what he cuts first and why vendor relationships can decide whether the doors stay open.

In this episode

• Skeen says his current job, Rosebud Casino in South Dakota, is his 14th, and that it was scheduled to close when he arrived (15:53, 18:46, 23:35).

• The books showed it was paying payroll but not its bills, so he made cuts straight away, including tribal jobs; two months ago it turned profitable for the first time since 2019, from down a million dollars a year to up 400 grand (21:37, 22:41, 23:04).

• Every property he has fixed was heavy on labor; as an example he says you might keep 100 employees instead of 150 (17:29, 17:58).

• Vendor relationships matter because suppliers could come and pick up slot machines over unpaid revenue share (18:23).

• He says there is a sweet spot in machines: cycles are long and volatile, so too much hold will burn players out (20:38).

• His view: "we're in the people business. We just move a lot of money" (0:03, 26:13).

Episode from Low Rollers by Casino Reports, published on YouTube.