photos and text: DAAguilar

On any given weekend night, on any PAGCOR branch, a whirlwind of promos and events await you.  Entertainment comes with the thrills that your favourite game brings.  In the mix of things, PAGCOR-Hyatt’s Party Pit brought the party to the table, literally.

Friday night and the area (Area 1) near the stage is electric.  Colors awash in substitute of the usually somber tones of the gold on blue vest uniform of the dealer.  On this night, the participating dealers are on old-school hip-hop gear.  The party started with dealers bumping and krumping to the latest street jazz derivative.  The svelte vocalist of Guarana, a samba band playing onstage decided to mix it up with the dealers/dancers and a fusion in gyration ensued.  Crowd started to gather to see this improv, (the proper term, I think, is “freestyling”) witnessing an evolution in dealing as gaming tilts toward its entertainment genome prominently.  Some onlookers were so moved they started swinging. (continue reading…)

When Pagcor-Hyatt Branch Manager Basil M. Pernia was in Las Vegas, he visited the Bally’s Casino. While roaming around the place, he saw a crowded portion that caught his attention. Everybody seemed to be having so much fun, as if there was a party going on.

It was the “Party Pit,” one area in the casino that features dancing dealers wearing colorful attires. Drinks and cocktails were served on the house.

BM Pernia thought it was a brilliant marketing so when he went back, he proposed the idea to PAGCOR-Hyatt General Manager Alexander I. Bettita, Jr. A committee was immediately created to start the ball rolling.

The “Party Pit” featuring dancing dealers was finally launched in PAGCOR-Hyatt last October 12, 2009 in area five of the Gaming Area. It now happens twice a month and their last for this year would be on December 28. Thirteen dealers, two pit supervisors and one pit manager are involved in this operation in an eight-hour shift from 6 p.m. to 2 a.m.

The casino marketing office headed by Lovicar Wood took charge of the promotions and provided the dealers with colorful uniforms.

In the words of BM Pernia, “So far, so good!”

“The area contributes to the income of the branch and the customers are really enjoying and looking forward to this pleasurable event,” he said.

The dealers are also enjoying their stint. According to them, even though they are not given their regular break time, they are having fun because they get more tips and can get rid of the more serious dealing procedures. In the “Party Pit,” the managers allow fancy styles of dealing.

The “Party Pit” includes dance performances from the dealers. At first, they were asked to perform only in the beginning, middle and end part of the shift but often, due to many requests from the customers, they perform more than three times.

It is true that because of the stiff competition nowadays, casinos have to look for creative and fun ways to keep the customers coming. With promotions like the “Party Pit,” PAGCOR-Hyatt continues to bring in the numbers and ensures that it will always reach its income targets.