Catering to a family market
When it opened in the late 1960s, Jay Sarno’s Circus Circus resort in Las Vegas was the first Sin City casino to hold the sin and present a more family-friendly, affordable image. Decades later, the formula is still working.
“There is a strong family market segment that as a business model has stood the test of time, through all the ups and downs of the economy going all the way back to the mid ’70s,” says Don Thrasher, Circus Circus president and CEO. “It wasn’t really a family resort when Bill Bennett purchased it in 1974, but one of his marketing moves was to take it to the family market segment, which is only so large. But Circus Circus has had that dominant position.”
According to the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, just 10 percent to 12 percent of Vegas visitors bring children under the age of 17. Circus Circus is the natural destination for that crowd, reported the Las Vegas Weekly, with its new El Loco rollercoaster and five-acre indoor Adventuredome theme park.
No big renovation plans are in the works for Circus Circus, another distinguishing characteristic. SLS just opened up the street, the Riv is said to be eyeing improvements, and MGM Resorts’ Rock in Rio festival grounds at the corner of Las Vegas Boulevard and Sahara Avenue are already impacting Circus Circus. The property recently ended its relationship with KOA Campgrounds, which managed Circus Circus’ adjacent RV park. The park will be substantially reduced to accommodate one of Rock in Rio’s festival fields.
Though it is one of the Strip’s oldest properties, Circus Circus has no need to reinvent itself or change with the times, said Thrasher, who has been with the resort for 15 years.
“The market segment this property has been catering to for the last 30 or 40 years has really shown its strength and longevity. You always look to the future and tweak the product to stay current, but we would have to give a lot of thought before making a major shift.”
