The 2021 version of the Global Gaming Expo wrapped up Thursday afternoon in Las Vegas with a week that exceeded expectations.
Representatives from several companies told Gaming America despite pre-show predictions attendance would be down due to show organizers requiring both proof of vaccination and full-time facial coverings in all public areas, they were pleased with foot traffic and the number of sales they were able to make during the conference.
John Connelly, CEO of Interblock Gaming, spoke for many when he proclaimed, “I was happily surprised at the number of attendees, and the quality of the attendees. I thought the quality was significantly higher than in years past. I believe casino operators and suppliers alike were very calculated on who they sent to G2E this year. The level of executives attending was tremendously higher than I have seen before.”
Dave Kubajak, SVP of sales, marketing and operations for JCM Global, agreed. He said the company had hopes G2E would see a good turnout, but was prepared for a small turnout.
“At 10 a.m. Tuesday [when the Expo Hall opened for the first time] our booth was flooded by people wanting to look at our robotic count room technology,” he said. “Having a new and novel product helped, but we had strong attendance that beat expectations all day Tuesday and Wednesday as well. Not only were there lots of customers, there were more C-level executive management attendees than in a long time. All of the gaming execs were here, they were wanting the technology to help them solve the problems they face, and they were in the mood to buy.”
According to Kubajak, casinos are dealing with labor issues, trying to maximize management of resources, and are looking for efficiencies wherever they can.
“Everybody wants bigger, faster, smarter,” he explained. “The frankness with which they are speaking about their challenges is refreshing.”
Caitlin Harte, director of product marketing for Incredible Technologies, said the company had an “excellent” show.
“We had a lot of foot traffic, quality meetings and tons of interest in our new products,” Harte said. “There was a buzz around our booth, and really around the whole show. Everything was very smooth, and we had a successful selling show.”
Your safety is our priority
Laura Olson-Reyes, VP of marketing and corporate communications for AGS, reported the company’s booth was “consistently busy” all three days the Expo Hall was open.
“We were able to meet with many of our customers from across the US, and even some from Mexico,” she said. “The show was energetic, and people were really happy to see each other. It was refreshing to see how our industry came together to make this show happen safely. Everyone had to be vaccinated, verified and have face coverings. The fact people wore masks is a testament to the collective desire to ensure we all flourish.”
Tiffany Sadler, global marketing director for SuzoHapp, said when the company began planning for G2E in March, many issues were very much up in the air. Because of travel restrictions, its 2021 booth was half the size it normally brings to Vegas.
“Gaming is very international, so with most of our European clients not here we didn’t bring products that apply to Europe,” Sadler noted. “We focused on our goals for the show and decided what we need to accomplish that. As it turned out, we were very busy. Our booth saw action non-stop. We were a lot more strategic than usual. We did not necessarily depend on getting passersby to come see what we are doing, it was an opportunity to get our customers to come by for appointments. Everyone was in the same place at the same time, other than travel restrictions, so we were able to do demos of our new products.”
Jon Hanlin, SVP of commercial strategy for Aristocrat Technologies, said G2E was a chance to show off “all the hard work our game engineers put in over the past one-and-a-half years.”
“The show went really well for us,” Hanlin declared. “It was great to be back with our casino partners. It showed the industry is back, the players are back, and it was great to get back to normalcy.”
Aristocrat launched a new “Dune” slot game at the same time the movie of the same name made its debut in theaters, which the company said was an industry first.
