It’s all about the experience.

Lots of folks these days are talking about the growth of online gaming and the demise of brick and mortar casinos. But hold your horses.

A comparison of the retail and movie industries might be instructive. While online retail revenues have grown to a $1.4 trillion industry, brick and mortar retail continues to chug along, managing to grow every year (except 2020) despite the spectacular growth of online channels. That is likely because successful retailers have innovated, created omni-channel distribution and provided reasons to come into the store.

The movie industry is a different story. The movie box office took a significant hit during the COVID pandemic and has never recovered. Movie ticket sales have been declining for years but box office revenues grew as ticket prices increased until the Pandemic. Perhaps the movie industry is suffering because of the product in the theater. The seats are nicer, the screens are better, the special effects are amazing, and the theaters smell better, but the actual product on the screen is wanting. Ultimately, the product is the movie, and your living room couch is just as comfy as a seat in a theater. We are after all experiencing the golden age of television.

Casino operators take heed. The experience in a brick and mortar casino still holds sway and while growth has slowed, the casino industry still looks more like the retail industry than the movie industry. The product and the experience matters.