Podcast
Episode 23: Excellence with Wynn Resorts, Through Both Product and People
With the mindset of continual investment in spaces and people, building them up with equal importance, Wynn cultivates an extraordinary experience and stands in a league of its own in the hospitality industry.
To kick off Season Two of Luxury Travel Innovators, I had the opportunity to meet Brian Gullbrants, Chief Operating Officer of North America for Wynn Resorts at the Sirius XM Studio in Las Vegas.. What followed was a fantastic conversation about how Wynn values its team members—the backbone of the brand—and why the focus should remain on human interaction in the growing integration of AI for luxury brands, all in the name of producing exceptional experiences for their guests.
In Brian’s words, he was “born into hospitality” and grew up in the back of his parent’s restaurant. At 18, he found his way to the Ritz-Carlton in Phoenix as a server, and subsequently spent the next 20 years with the Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company in roles ranging from F&B to general manager and ending as the Vice President of Operations. Now, 17+ years later, he’s fortunate to have experienced the incredible rise of Wynn. Just last April, the company took the opportunity to celebrate their employees (over 17,000) at Allegiant Stadium, complete with a red carpet, paparazzi and a gifting suite, where the CEO, Craig Billings, announced that everyone would be receiving $10,000 worth of Wynn stock. From Brian’s perspective, the team members earn the Wynn reputation every day, and are certainly worth celebrating. Anecdotally, I’ve noticed that most employees share they’ve been with the company either since its opening, or at least double digits in terms of years. That care is reflected back in the quality of the resort, which continues to improve over time.
As a brand, Wynn centers around four core values. The first one is excellence, whether it’s the physical property and the spaces designed; excellence in their culture, making sure that everyone is treated with dignity and respect; and excellence in their team, with investment in people and training. The next value is artistry, exemplified by the pastry shop within the resort—a proud team of bakers produce 110 different types of bread from scratch, every single day. The company believes this focus sets them apart from the competition, creating an experience that guests cannot get anywhere else. The third value is being service-driven, both to the customer, to fellow team members, and to the community. And lastly, the fourth value is being progressive. Wynn continually pushes the envelope and tries new things to bring a high-value experience for their guests.
Craig Billings said it well on the last earnings call, “Wynn Las Vegas is not necessarily built for those visiting Las Vegas on a tight budget, however, they are the type of customer who’s really unrelenting when it comes to value for their dollar.” In a time where there’s so much noise and confusion about branding, it’s really about authenticity and being true to who you are as a brand. Rather than thinking about what can be taken away without the customer noticing (which is what many of Wynn’s competitors seem to be doing), Wynn does just the opposite, with the mindset of focusing on what can we give and how can we make this better. And then charge appropriately, knowing that they are delivering value that the customer will appreciate and be willing to spend top dollar for.
For Formula One that just came through Las Vegas, Wynn opened and finished with the highest rates and was the only competitor in the market that had a three-night minimum stay—and were near full throughout the event, for the third year in a row. Despite the recent rumblings about the “decline” of Vegas, Wynn has continued to outperform with an all-time record EBITDA. The partnership with F1 has been mutually beneficial, and the excitement of the event highlights Vegas in a new, one-of-a-kind way.
“If you want to make money in luxury, you have to deliver to the customer. You can’t cut corners. You can’t cut maintenance. You can’t cut security. You can’t cut cleanliness. We could easily make more money in the short term by cutting those things, but we know it’s critically important for our customer to come in here and feel safe, feel comfortable, and to see a clean place surrounded by all the brands, people and community that they value, and then experience something they don’t experience anywhere else.”
Other sports and entertainment developments have helped to change the fabric of Vegas. The Sphere is located across the street from the entrance to the Wynn, and provides a new reason to visit the city separate from gambling. The non-gaming experiences now set Vegas apart from the rest of the world, positioning it as the entertainment and sports capital of the world. Food and Beverage pop-ups are another avenue that has been successful for Wynn. Recently, they established a Yellowstone-themed pop-up, based on the hit television series, that was so popular, they are now in talks to explore the possibility of a permanent restaurant location and partnership.
Sustainability is a huge focus for the company, and they’ve made impressive energy-efficiency strides despite their desert location. 75% of Wynn Las Vegas’ peak energy comes from renewable resources, and if you were to look down from a birdseye view, every rooftop of every tower is all solar, and 160 acres of solar fields have been contracted to power both Wynn and Encore. Operationally, Brian believes it’s too early to call how AI will integrate into the brand; however, he’s interested to see how AI innovations will help their staff serve better, faster. He believes that, in the future, human interaction will be the luxury component.
Before closing with LTI’s signature rapid fire questions, Brian shared his philosophy that you should always learn from everybody around you, and lead with the understanding that everybody, no matter their position or title, has something to learn. He’s proud of the work his team does, and proud to be working with them. For personal travel, Brian is headed to South Fork Lodge for a fly fishing expedition. Looking back towards travel in the past, he misses the rareness of a trip, and how the infrequent nature of travel used to make each vacation extremely special. Looking forward, Brian thinks that unique experiences that are authentic to the destination should continue to be a focus.
Thank you, Brian, for hosting the first episode of season two of Luxury Travel Innovators at the Sirius XM Studio, and for sharing such interesting insights on the travel and hospitality industry. The full episode is available to listen to and watch on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Youtube.
