As part of its “Get to Know Gaming” American Gaming Small Business Jobs Tour, the American Gaming Association honored Regents Maintenance Supply in St. Louis, Missouri. The company is provides janitorial supplies and equipment provider for regional casinos, which have an economic impact of .3 billion annually and provides 4,500 small business jobs.
Founded 18 years ago, owner Lamonte Sowell said Regents has grown due to working with area casinos, in particular River City Casino and Hollywood Casino. “Over the years, we have built relationships with several casinos in Missouri that has allowed us to grow our business. Regents has the capacity and professionalism to provide quality service and we look forward to many more years partnering with the casino gaming industry,” Sowell said.
River City Casino Vice President and General Manager Chris Plant stated, “River City works hard to identify and utilize locally owned small businesses for the procurement of its goods and services. One such company is Regents Maintenance Supply. We have been working directly with Lamonte Sowell for over six years. Regents helps keep our property stunningly beautiful, which enables us to deliver a luxurious experience to our guests. Additionally, we take pride in knowing that as we have grown our businesses, Regents has grown its business as well.” Hollywood Casino Vice President and General Manager Todd George added, “Hollywood Casino is committed to purchasing many of our goods and services locally. We are proud to work with local businesses like Regents from throughout the greater St. Louis area.”
AGA President and Chief Executive Officer Geoff Freeman noted, “Casino gaming is and always has been a strong community partner in Missouri and across the country where hundreds of thousands of small business jobs are supported. The industry exemplifies the American entrepreneurial spirit with a special emphasis on creating good local jobs for American workers both inside and outside our casinos in nearly every state.”
Freeman said the $240 billion casino industry supports 1.7 jobs nationwide. In Missouri, gaming provides more than 20,000 jobs, supports $836 million in wages and has a $3.3 billion economic impact. In addition, in 2016 Missouri casinos gave approximately $324.1 million to the state’s Gaming Proceeds for Education Fund. Also in 2016, approximately $77.7 million in gaming tax and admissions fee revenue was returned to local host communities.
According to a recent AGA study by Spectrum Gaming Group, the casino industry nationwide generates $52 billion in annual revenue for small businesses and supports $13 billion in small business employee wages. Also, $52 billion in annual small business revenue goes to real estate, finance, health care, STEM, manufacturing, information technology and other industries.
AGA’s “Get to Know Gaming” campaign is a multi-year public affairs effort that includes its Gaming Votes initiative and broader G2KG campaign in addition to the American Gaming Small Business Jobs Tour.
