Pennsylvania's Parx Casino Continues to Lead Gaming Industry as a Smoke-Free Venue
Parx Casino in Bensalem, situated just north of Philadelphia, and its partner casino, Parx Casino Shippensburg, are the only gambling facilities in Pennsylvania that have adopted a completely smoke-free policy. Despite requiring smokers to venture outdoors for lighting up, Parx has managed to trump its land-based competitors in terms of business.
In September 2023, Parx pocketed a staggering $31.5 million from its slot machines and $16 million from its table games. This combined in-person win of approximately $47.5 million surpassed Wind Creek Bethlehem's haul of about $43.5 million. This trend has been observed since Parx decided to maintain its smoke-free stance even after the coronavirus pandemic.
In 2019, Wind Creek was still known as Sands before it got acquired by the Poarch Band of Creek Indians from Alabama for a whopping $1.3 billion.
The Smoke-Free Decision: A Hit
During June 2021, Governor Tom Wolf (D) of Pennsylvania permitted indoor smoking to resume in casinos. Despite this, Parx officials remained steadfastly smoke-free, following the 2008 Clean Indoor Air Act that permits up to 25% of a casino's gaming space to be designated for smoking.
Parx officials observed that this move resonated with their employees and the majority of guests. This policy was of paramount importance for table game dealers who had been affected the most by second-hand smoke. Even smokers who had to leave the gaming floor to use the smoking patio have given positive feedback. According to Carrie Nork Minelli, Parx's public relations director, the employees, particularly the table games team, are highly satisfied with this change.
Parx CMO Marc Oppenheimer stated last year that Parx's decision to remove indoor smoking was favorable for all customers, staff, and business operations. "We made this move to ensure the health and comfort of both our guests and employees. We've received positive feedback from both [of them] while also experiencing strong growth and gaining market share," he explained.
Online Gaming Record-Breaking
The 17 land-based casinos in Pennsylvania amassed a gross gaming revenue of $275.1 million in September 2023, which is a decrease of around $5 million compared to September 2022.
Bookmakers, on the other hand, experienced a decline in the winnings from betting both online and in person. The total revenue collected from sports betting in September of the current year totaled $36.6 million, a drastic fall from the $50.2 million they received in September 2022.
However, this dip in in-person casino and sports betting revenues was swiftly redeemed through online gambling, where Pennsylvania's online casino platforms scored a record win for the month.
The collective September online casino gaming wins amounted to $157.1 million, representing a 43% surge from the same period the previous year. Prior to this, Pennsylvania's band of internet casino platforms had earned a record $148.1 million in March 2023.
Hollywood Casino at Penn National Race Course's online casino platform has taken over the Pennsylvania iGaming market, with a September GGR of $64.8 million, which sums up to nearly half of the state's iGaming market. Boyd Gaming's Valley Forge Casino Resort online platforms placed second with $35.4 million.
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Source: www.casino.org
